REFS’ chief Howard Webb said it was RIGHT for the VAR not to intervene to recommend a red card for Diogo Dalot in the Manchester derby.
City boss Pep Guardiola and his team were convinced Portuguese defender Dalot should have been dismissed for his early foul on Jeremy Doku.
But, speaking on the latest edition of the Match Officials Mic’d Up review show, PGMOL boss Webb said Stockley Park official Craig Pawson was correct not to urge ref Anthony Taylor to review his yellow card on the pitchside monitor.
Webb, 54, conceded the final decision had “split opinion” but suggested the immediate reaction of the City players was a pointer to the right response.
He said: “On the field there’s not a lot of reaction to it.
“The VAR’s job then is to decide if the on field decision of a yellow card is clearly and obviously wrong.
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“A lot of situations sit in the grey zone, where there’s a mix of considerations. This is one of those.
“The point of contact is on the knee, but we also have to factor in speed, force, and intensity. You’ll not see many red cards in the Premier League for serious foul play that don’t involve those things.
“That foot touches the knee but you can see there’s not a great deal of speed or intensity.
“It’s a subjective judgement but I’m not sure it’s excessive force.
“So I’m absolutely aligned that once that decision’s taken on the field, we leave it as referee’s call and don’t intervene.”
Webb also backed two other contentious calls that saw West Ham denied a second goal in their defeat by Nottingham Forest and Everton defender Michael Keane dismissed for pulling the hair of Wolves’ Tolu Arokodare.
The Hammers’ “goal” was ruled out for an offside offence by Taty Castellanos earlier in the build-up, when the ball diverted to the home player off the foot of Forest’s Nikola Milenkovic.
Webb said: “Just because it’s come off a Forest player, doesn’t mean it negates the offside position of Castellanos in this situation.
“For that to be a situation which negates the offside position, when it comes off Milenkovic, it has to be considered a controlled play, where we feel that he would be able to take possession of the ball if he wanted, or pass it to a team-mate, or clear the ball.
“That’s not what happens.
“Yes, he’s making a deliberate action of trying to challenge [Crysencio] Summerville, but that doesn’t mean he’s making a deliberate play on the ball. His actions are deliberate, but his play is not controlled.”
On the Keane dismissal which infuriated Toffees boss David Moyes – Everton’s appeal against both the dismissal and automatic three-game ban was rejected – Webb was unrepentant.
He said: “It’s unusual and you don’t see it very often but for some years now, actions where players pull an opponent’s hair have been deemed as violent conduct.
“Michael Keane clearly wraps his hand around the locks, pulls the head back. That’s quite an offensive thing to happen to you.
“It’s something that was in the guidance we gave to clubs before the season started, that grabbing somebody’s hair with force is deemed violent conduct, and the player will be sent off. So, it was the appropriate outcome.”
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