Referee Craig Pawson didn’t have a cracker at Hull v. Tottenham today. I thought he was quite inconsistent, letting things go and then calling the same thing two plays later. The players were rightly frustrated with him. But I have to say, I think he got the Gaston Ramirez red card right. Basically, Ramirez was covering Big Jan Vertonghen (who is, admittedly,
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Update: Here’s the excellent response about Benteke’s red card by Villa’s manager, Paul Lambert. Usual disclaimer: I am not only a referee supporter, but a Tottenham supporter. Let me start out by saying I hated seeing Christian Benteke sent off in the Villa v. Tottenham match. He was playing like a boss, and I honestly don’t think Spurs would have
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Mark Clattenburg…God bless him. He’s just so easy to pick on, isn’t he? And while I’m not about to say that the drama that seems to follow him about isn’t all his fault, I do think it’s an easy narrative for the media, whether it’s true or not. Take the infamous “Sheeran Gate.” Last week, the story broke pretty much
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Infamously self-destructive Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg seems to be at it again. Clatts has been suspended from Premier League action this weekend after committing two refereeing faux pas. First, he contacted Crystal Palace boss Neil Warnock by phone after the draw to West Brom. No word on what was said or why Clatts felt the need to make such
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Yeah, so…if you were thinking to yourself: “Exactly how would I go about getting a red card in a Premier League game…?” This would be it. Two-footed, studs up, coming in high…it doesn’t get more clear cut as that, and referee Craig Pawson doesn’t exactly hand out red cards like candy (this was his first). Even Jose Mourinho can’t complain about
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So, you probably heard that Edinson Cavani got sent off against Lens for a celebration he does all the time. Well, yes and no. The basics of the issue were that Cavani scored on a penalty, and celebrated by pulling his customary “rifle” salute – which he does all the time. Referee Nicolas Rainville (who, I must say, looks like
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Undoubtedly the biggest match – Atletico Madrid v. Juventus – goes to Dr. Dreamy himself – Dr. Felix Brych of Germany (above). Not only is the good doctor quite easy on the eyes, he’s a damn good referee, having officiated the last Europa League final and at the World Cup. My only hesitation is that Brych is not the paciest
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If you follow me on Facebook (and if you don’t, you should!), you’ll notice I post a lot of one-off stories about referees that may not warrant their own post. There’ve been quite a few interesting stories this week, so I thought I’d gather them all together into a Sunday Roundup. Craig Bellamy: I do feel for referees Bellamy famously
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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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Let’s talk about something besides Mark Clattenburg and Manchester United, shall we? There are two big derbies this week: Liverpool v. Everton and Arsenal v. Spurs. (Though, let’s face it, the way my poor Spurs are playing right now, the North London derby may not be much of a contest…) Two of England’s top three FIFA-rated referees will be in action
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PLAY THE ADVANTAGE 