Oliver had some decisions to makeplaceholder image
Oliver had some decisions to make | Getty Images
Arsenal romped to a derby victory over Tottenham on Sunday, but were Spurs hard done by with some decisions?
Dermot Gallagher has been providing his thoughts on some of the refereeing decisions made during the North London derby between Tottenham and Arsenal on Sunday. The Gunners romped to a 4-1 derby win thanks to braces from Eberechi Eze and Viktor Gyokeres, but it wasn’t plain sailing for the whole game.
The two sides went in at the break level after Randal Kolo Muani cancelled out Eze’s opener, and it wasn;’t until the second half where Arsenal ran away with the derby, and indeed the bragging rights.
It was a key win for Arsenal as they look to keep hold of top spot, and they needed to bounce back quickly after a frustrating draw with bottom club Wolves during the week. But for Spurs, they sink a little further with the result and what happened elsewhere, now within four points of the drop.
On the day, Arsenal were pretty good value for their win, especially in the second half, but there were some decisions to be made by Michael Oliver and the officiating crew. One of the big ones was a disallowed Muani goal for an alleged push on Gabriel Magalhaes.
Explaining the decision on Sky Sports’ ref watch, Gallagher said: “The referee gives it. The on-field decision is always going to stand, he thinks there is enough of a push. VAR is never going to say he's got it wrong as the evidence is there.”
Pundit Jay Bothroyd felt differently, adding: “I thought it was really soft. When you look at the trajectory of the ball, Gabriel is underneath the ball and he realises he is in that position. It is not enough to react in the way he did. He has fooled the referee."
As for a later decision that Gabriel dodge a potential red card for a foul on Muani as the striker looked to get in behind, Gallagher agreed again with the decision on the pitch. He said: “I don't think it's a red card at all. If he gives a foul, I accept that. The ball runs through to the keeper. The striker isn't in possession of the ball.
“I don't think there's any danger of him being sent off but if he gives a foul, he can't argue.”
Bothroyd agreed with that verdict, adding: “It's definitely not a red card but that should be a foul. Gabriel is not even looking at the ball, he's looking at Kolo Muani.”
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