Refs’ boss Webb backs officials over Dalot incident

Howard Webb, the manager of the Premier League referees, refutes claims that Diogo Dalot was sent off in the Manchester derby on Saturday.

In the 11th minute of Manchester United’s 2-0 victory over Manchester City, Dalot was flagged for a high challenge on Jeremy Doku.

The Portugal international had tried to intercept the ball by closing down Doku and stretching out his leg. He made contact with the winger’s knee with his studs.

Anthony Taylor received a yellow card on-field, according to the video assistant referee (VAR), Craig Pawson, who defended the contact as “glancing and not with excessive force.”

A yellow card and the slow-motion replays, according to Professional Game Match Officials boss Webb, are unacceptable outcomes.

On Match Officials Mic’d Up, Webb claimed that the officials on the field witnessed Dalot’s actions: they saw him stretch forward with his foot, touch the ball, and then make contact with Jeremy Doku.

They determined that was reckless and therefore deserving of a yellow card.

It’s obvious that others are red, I know. I disagree, believing that there are several factors at play.

“I am aware that the knee is the point of contact when we look at this,” he said. However, speed, force, and intensity are also taken into account.

There aren’t many red cards for serious foul play in the Premier League that don’t involve those things.

We now examine those things from a quick-view of the incident. You get a somewhat distorted view without moving it at full speed. You can’t tell for certain how much force and speed were involved in the challenge.

That foot touches the knee fairly quickly, they say. On Slow-Mo, we can tell that it touches that knee.

“But when you play it in real time, you can see that the action is not very fast at full speed. Not much of it.

Slow motion and freeze frames were heavily criticized for using them a few years ago because people claimed this was not the game’s style and that it was played in real life.

“It can look a lot worse when you slow it down,” it says. Many situations can appear to be red-card offences when you freeze frame it.

Dalot should have been dismissed, according to many former players.

Alan Shearer, a former England striker, said to BBC Sport, “I think VAR got that terribly wrong. That was a clear red card to me.

“Forget about the contact glancing,” “or not.” When the VAR has two professionals looking at that, it should have been a very simple decision to give a red card, although I can understand why the referee didn’t do it. It might have been difficult for him to see it.

Webb insists that the VAR was right not to intervene and that the on-field decision should continue regardless of how it ended.

You have to consider whether you need to look at it at full speed, Webb continued. “Yes, it could be red.

“I believe that in this circumstance, it was appropriate to leave it at the discretion of the referee.” I would have anticipated the red card to also be present if it had been given.

Is there excessive force? Some people will say they are, but I can see there could be. It is a subjective judgment.

Is there excessive force when you see it moving at full speed? I’m not sure if that’s true, or maybe not, but I’m in agreement that the decision should be left to the referee’s discretion and that no one interferes with the video.