Referee boss Howard Webb is facing fresh calls to sack one of his officials after Stuart Attwell failed to send off Manchester United star Marcel Sabitzer in their win over Leicester.
Sabitzer was lucky to escape a sending off after a late tackle on Foxes defender Wout Faes. The Belgian had beaten the Red Devils midfielder to a loose ball, with Sabitzer planting his studs down the thigh of the Leicester man.
Attwell did not deem the challenge to be worthy of a red card, with VAR Paul Tierney agreeing with that decision. The failure to send off Faes left Leicester furious, with Attwell's decision now leading to former Tottenham star Garth Crooks calling for him to be sacked.
" Premier League referee Stuart Attwell should be relieved of his duties. He allowed Manchester United's Marcel Sabitzer to remain on the pitch after the worst tackle I have seen in years and without so much as a caution," Crooks told BBC Sport.
"What made matters worse, Attwell then booked Leicester City's Nampalys Mendy, having made not one, but two, perfectly legitimate tackles.
"Of course it is the referee's opinion that ultimately matters. But if a top-class official cannot distinguish between a 'career-threatening tackle' and two perfectly legitimate challenges, then that referee has no business officiating in the top league in the world.
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"Top professional players deserve referees who know the difference between a good and a very bad tackle."
Leicester boss Brendan Rodgers was left fuming by the failure to send Sabitzer off, especially as his side went on to be comfortably beaten 3-0. Rodgers highlighted previous incidents as he questioned Attwell's decision.
“It is a sending off. It’s a straight leg onto the knee. How it was not looked at and deemed that is incredible, when I see it," Rodgers said in his post-match press conference.
“I don’t know [why a red card wasn’t shown]. We’ve seen in the last few weeks, some of the decisions. Someone has said it was maybe after an incident but I don’t buy that one.
“If you look at Arsenal ’s penalty at Manchester City, Eddie Nketiah is in goal and has a shot at goal, but the follow-through makes it a foul, which makes it a penalty. In this instance, even if the play has stopped, he’s followed through and straight-legged him right on his knee.”
With the incident having been checked by VAR, Sabitzer cannot be retrospectively punished for his tackle. That means he will be available for next week's Carabao Cup final, while Leicester are now just four points above the relegation zone.
Only last week, Lee Mason left his role as a full-time VAR official by mutual consent after a blunder during Arsenal's draw with Brentford. Webb held an emergency meeting in response to a string of mistakes by his referees, but those problems show no sign of going away.
