Darren England takes out a yellow card
(Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Darren England has been criticised for not issuing a yellow card in response to one contentious incident in Liverpool’s Carabao Cup tie against Chelsea on Wednesday night.
The referee booked four players over the course of the match at Anfield, but he didn’t reach for his pocket when Emmanuel Emegha inexplicably charged at Virgil van Dijk off the ball and shoved the Reds captain to the ground.
The veteran defender shrugged off questions about that incident afterwards, although a former chief executive of the PGMOL (now Pro Ref) believes that the Blues striker should’ve been cautioned for his indiscetion.
Hackett: England should’ve booked Emegha
Speaking to Football Insider, Keith Hackett said: “Virgil van Dijk had every right to be annoyed with the referee and his opponent. The referee took no action for what was a very aggressive run and push that met the criteria for being reckless.
“Van Dijk ended up on the floor, so this player is very fortunate not to receive a yellow card. Come on referee, you had a reasonable game, but you could have done better here.
“This could have easily caused a mass confrontation. I am surprised and disappointed that a yellow card was not issued to the Chelsea player.”
Virgil van Dijk was NOT HAPPY with Emmanuel Emegha 😒 pic.twitter.com/UEtoJ7n5va
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) October 29, 2026
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Emegha was lucky to avoid a yellow card
Hackett is right – Emegha was fortunate to avoid a yellow card for his shove on Van Dijk, especially considering some of the bookings that England handed out earlier in the match.
For example, Lewis Koumas was harshly cautioned after just 10 minutes for a minor foul on Maxence Lacroix, which was far less of an indiscretion than what the Chelsea substitute did to his fellow Dutchman in the second half.
There was no discernible reason for the Blues attacker to run at the Liverpool captain and barge him to the ground, and as Hackett said, it could easily have led to a large-scale brawl between players from both teams.
We don’t want to see cards being dished out unnecessarily, but Emegha’s petulance would have deserved a booking, certainly more so than Koumas for his foul on Lacroix.