Premier League referee Anthony Taylor made a rare appearance to answer questions from BT Sport’s Jake Humphrey regarding the pressure of officiating and what he would call for from supporters to consider.
The interview comes in the midst of a season where Arsenal have been the victim of a number of controversial refereeing calls throughout the campaign. Decisions have gone against Arsenal that threatened to cost the Gunners points and, in some cases, directly affected the outcome of matches.
It is therefore unsurprising that Mikel Arteta recently admitted he would be seeking clarification from PGMOL regarding the decision-making from referees this season. The red card brandished to Gabriel Martinelli in strange circumstances against Wolves proved to be the catalyst for the Spaniard to demand answers following a string of similar baffling decisions.
"If you ask me if I’m happy with the decisions we’ve had this season, I’m not at all. But that’s a conversation I will have privately with the officials. We need explanations, we need explanations with what happened in VAR and I need explanations with what happened today,” Arteta said.
When asked if the discussions had taken place he said, "No but they are gonna happen soon."
Arsenal supporters have made compilations online of decisions not going their way. Ben Godfrey’s red card-worthy stamp on Takehiro Tomiyasu in the 2-1 Everton loss was just one example. Harry Maguire’s tug on the Japanese international in the penalty area in the 3-2 defeat to Manchester United was equally inexplicable.
Nelson Semedo’s clear and obvious foul against Martinelli in the first minute of the Wolves game last Thursday only added to the sense of injustice. Stuart Attwell blocking Martinelli’s sight of a shot on goal in the 2-1 Man City defeat. James MacArthur’s brutal kick on Bukayo Saka in the 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace. The list goes on.
And that could be easily lengthened if looking back on previous seasons. We've only scratched the surface from this particular campaign.
Therefore, when Anthony Taylor calls for "just more understanding and more empathy", it is difficult from an Arsenal perspective to provide that.
The Premier League is supposed to be the pinnacle of the sport in all its forms, including officiating. Yet time and time again, mistakes continue to be made across the league costing teams points and serious money when taking into account the impact on the end of season table.
Perfection should be demanded of officials, especially when there is VAR in place to give the benefit of replays in the stadium.
Everton received an apology from PGMOL after a penalty was not awarded for Manchester City’s Rodri handling the ball in his own penalty area. The decision cost the Toffees the chance of an equaliser in their battle to avoid relegation and it could yet cost Liverpool in the title race.
Should Arsenal have an apology for the errors of the season? Frankly, Arsenal do not need one. They have taken the season into their own hands and have forced themselves into a race for the Champions League in spite of the poor decision making.
Forget apologies. There needs to be a rigorous overhaul of the English game’s officiating standards with a greater emphasis on training and accountability for consistent errors. More public questioning of decisions after matches directly to match officials and an effort made to introduce greater diversity of officials at the top level.
Until accountability is installed, the standard will remain as it is. Arsenal meanwhile must continue to take the game, as much as they can, into their own hands.
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