Despite the controversial decision to bench Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes, Chris Kavanagh will continue officiating in the Premier League.
At the end of the first half, Kavanagh ruled that the Portuguese international had committed a serious foul against Tottenham Hotspur’s James Maddison.
Fernandes disagreed with the decision after the game, claiming that Maddison also believed the red card was unjustified.
Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher shared this view, calling the incident an “optical illusion” and stating that a yellow card would have been the more appropriate action.
Kavanagh is set to officiate again, this time in the VAR hub at Stockley Park for Everton’s match against Newcastle United on Saturday. He will return to on-field refereeing for Chelsea’s game against Nottingham Forest on Sunday.
Kavanagh has faced significant criticism after reducing Manchester United to 10 men while they were trailing 1-0. Gallagher believes Kavanagh was misled by his assistant referee.
“At the time, not many people thought the assistant had any input,” Gallagher explained, suggesting that the referee’s decision was influenced by faulty information.
Gallagher added, “The referee called for the red card quickly based on the viewpoint he had. If all available resources had been used, the outcome would likely have been different.”
He concluded by saying the assistant’s perspective likely misled Kavanagh, giving the impression of a high foot without fully observing the impact.
According to Gallagher, the lack of distance and speed in the tackle means it shouldn’t have resulted in a red card.
