I’m a big supporter of the referees and of Michael Oliver in particular. You guys know that. I’m also a supporter of Tottenham, so I was over the moon when Nacer Chadli managed to score against Arsenal at the Emirates today. (Though, Tottenham being Tottenham, that joy was short-lived.) But I have to say I was absolutely stunned at the
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There’s a lot of buzz about this supposed Jack Wilshere handball in Arsenal’s 2-2 draw with Manchester City Saturday. Manuel Pellegrini thinks it should have been a penalty; referee Mark Clattenburg did not. Let’s be clear: This issue is not why Manchester City did not win this match, despite what Pellegrini wants you to believe. The two Arsenal goals happened
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Here are some thoughts I had watching a few of today’s Premier League referees in action. These are just my general impressions; they’re not scientific, and I don’t try and nitpick every single decision. But, as always, if you saw something I didn’t, let us know in comments below. Mark Clattenburg, Arsenal v. Manchester City Clatts was in rare form
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The FA Cup final between Arsenal and Hull City will take place at Wembley on Saturday, May 17. Here are the officials: Referee: Lee Probert Assistant Referees: Jake Collin and Mick McDonough Fourth Official: Kevin Friend Reserve AR: Simon Bennett There’s a very sweet article about Probert in the Wiltshere Gazette and Herald. He talks about what it means to
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How awesome is this?! My imaginary boyfriend, Lee Probert, has been given the FA Cup Final between Arsenal and Hull City at Wembley on May 17. Look how sweet he is: “The first person I thought about was my dad who I lost six years ago. He was always there to support me throughout my career and it’s payback for
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Match Week 34 in Premier League gets extended a tad this week, due to FA Cup and some other make up games. Arsenal are coming off their lucky win over Wigan Athletic in FA Cup to face West Ham, who’ve turned out not to be nearly as bad as they were threatening to be at the beginning of the season. The
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Andre Marriner and Michael Oliver will be officiating the two FA cup semi finals on April 12 and 13. If you’re the betting type, you can feel pretty comfortable putting your money on Mark Clattenburg for the FA Final on May 17. Not only is he one of the few “big guys” in English refereeing not to have officiated a
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Last week, I said I’d love to see Premier League referees allowed to explain themselves in controlled conditions. And this week that’s exactly what’s happened. Andre Marriner was made available to the Telegraph after his mistake at Arsenal last weekend. In case you were hiding under a rock, he sent off Kieran Gibbs instead of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain after AOC slapped a
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That’s what she said. Actually, that’s what Swansea said, and they may just have a point. So, Swansea were at Arsenal, and were reinvigorated by a Mathieu Flamini own goal in the 90th minute. (Yes. Really.) The score was 2-2 at this point. There had originally been four minutes of added time, but the goal and celebration should have added
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After yesterday’s debacle at Stamford Bridge, with Andre Marriner sending off the wrong Arsenal player, there’s been a predictable amount of howling from the media that referees should be forced to explain their decisions. It’s an interesting question and not as straightforward as it may seem at first blush. I’ve heard over and over that referees should be forced to
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PLAY THE ADVANTAGE 