Regarding the contentious penalty against Myles Lewis-Skelly during Saturday’s 1-1 draw between Arsenal and Everton, a former Premier League referee has shared his thoughts. When the adolescent took down Jack Harrison in the first ninety seconds of the second half at Goodison Park, Iliman Ndiaye was able to cancel off Leandro Trossard’s opening goal, setting up yet another controversial moment.
Lewis-Skelly had previously been wronged by officials when he was dismissed against Wolves; however, this judgement was later reversed following an appeal. The spot-kick lost them all three points on Merseyside, though, so Mikel Arteta’s supporters had to live with the consequences this time. An ex-PGMOL chief has now expressed his opinions over the choices made by VAR Stuart Atwell and Darren England.
Keith Hackett Slams Lewis-Skelly Penalty Decision
The former referee chief admitted to being baffled by Darren England’s call
Former official Keith Hackett criticised the decision to give Myles Lewis-Skelly a penalty in an interview with Football Insider, arguing that a free kick to Arsenal would have been a better course of action. Hackett thought that Darren England would have been safer to bring the play back to that point because replays showed that Harrison and the 18-year-old were fighting before they even got to the penalty area.
“The penalty kick that Darren England gave in the Everton vs. Arsenal match is incredibly severe. A deeper examination of the event reveals that Harrison, an Everton player, made the initial contact before the two men became entangled.
“For me, a free kick, safe refereeing, to the defending team should have been the outcome, certainly not a penalty kick awarded.”
“When you look at the penalty kick awarded by Darren England in the Everton vs Arsenal game, it is extremely harsh. On a closer look at the incident, you see that the Everton player [Harrison] initiated the contact and then both players tangled with each other.
“For me, a free kick, safe refereeing, to the defending team should have been the outcome, certainly not a penalty kick awarded.”
