22 Oct 2023 21:14:12
What do people think is going on with referees at the moment, have they completely lost the plot or is the media creating a frenzy of all decisions made by the officials? Post match commentary pays more time talking about officiating than football!

I know it’s a complex issue with many factors effecting the game but the amount of red cards being issued is alarming, in there search for consistency in the application of the law discretion and common sense has gone out the window. The refs have essentially created a rod to break their own back!

Yesterday is a prime example, the fact that Konate being sent off is a joke when you compare it to seasons past, if he was to be sent off yesterday then Rodri should never finish a game! Similarly with Ashley young and jones a few weeks ago, the ref should have given the player a final warning before their 2nd yellow card and put them on notice.

I don’t think any fan wants this, yes we all want to secure an advantage for your team and I was admittedly shouting for a 2nd yellow for young when he made the tackle but if he had got a final warning and had to play the rest of the game on his best behaviour surely that’s an adequate punishment?

On a side note thought Sean Dyche and klopp handled his pressers well and were very fair and balanced in their assessments.

1.) 22 Oct 2023
22 Oct 2023 22:48:03
Young’s example is a bit different since he obviously kicked the ball away deliberately when he already has a yellow. Then he proceeds to make a tackle that’s clearly a yellow.

2.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 00:53:22
One factor you have to consider is that commentators, YouTubers, all the social media pages etc all make more of every little incident than needed, much more than they used to.
Nobody thinks Konate should have seen red, however it creates artificial talking points and talking points lead to clicks on rubbish pages and clicks are income for these people.
A story about how Konate did nothing doesn’t generate the same amount of clicks as some made up rubbish about how he should have seen red, the refs bias, he’s not constant blah blah blah.
Football fans these days are like the teenage girls of yesteryear reading smash hits magazine to see what made up gossip they have printed that week.

It doesn’t take away from the fact that the standard of refs is quite appalling like, but they are made out to be a lot worse than they actually are (If that’s possible)

There’s quite a lot wrong in the game these days though I was watching Zaniolo faking a head injury today for example in the Villa game and I found it pretty despicable to be honest. I know plenty of players fake injuries and I am fully aware that includes Liverpool players. But I wish VAR would review these incidents as well and if they are obviously cheating in this way then I’m sure more fans would like to see yellow cards for that than whatever Konate was meant to have done.

3.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 06:28:47
Maybe it’s just me but I thought konate was bang to rights.

Balls gone, players going into clear space, his leg catches him first and he has a mild pull as well. The moment he gives the foul for me he’s got to send him off.

That being said the consistency was appalling. Take Tarkowski in the first half when he wiped jota out on his mazy run. Clear yellow as you will ever see. Not given.

4.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 07:43:08
Don't forget your left back, 4 fouls in the 1st 20 mins and no card!, corruption at least.

5.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 08:10:05
Wrt Konates incident, if the roles were reversed we would have been calling for a red. Konate was lucky I reckon.

It's very interesting though isn't it. like Wassa says, no-one mentions Tarkowskis tackle on Jota, yet both are the same wrt situation and outcome

If Tarkowski was on a yellow, would people be talking about it as well? If Konate wasn't on a yellow already, would it be such a hot topic

We talk about consistency, but the ref was consistent in both scenarios. No yellow given.

So what is the correct outcome here?

6.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 08:27:14
Problem is that the rules are too complex and open to interpretation. When handball was handball it was simple. Now it might be any number of different outcomes when the ball comes into contact with the hand. I sympathise with the refs having to monitor all these nuances of rules but they also have VAR to fall back on so referee error shouldn't happen any more. Ahem.

7.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 09:10:18
But Konate WAS on a yellow Tarkowski WASN'T, your point is?

8.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 09:18:52
Common sense refereeing went out of the window a long time ago. There are so many yellow cards because players are desperate to stop counterattacks. I agree they should be yellows as they are stopping potential goals, which are all we want to see. As for the Zaniolo incident, it was guaranteed that players would abuse the head injury rule. Some teams probably have coaching sessions on it. The only way to stop it is if the player goes down with a ‘head’ injury, he has to stay off the field for 5 minutes instead of the usual 30 seconds.

9.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 10:22:54
Glt the point is if Tarkowski wasn’t booked then you can hardly call for Konate to be booked for the same offence.

And if Konate and Tarkowski are being booked for those challenges then Man City would be down to 8 men every game as that is their whole defensive tactic.

I think the ref was right not to book either player but the way things are right now I wouldn’t have been surprised if he had.

10.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 14:55:58
Konate's wasn't a yellow. He merely brushed the other blokes stomach with his arm and he went down like a sack of shipt. If it wasn't a yellow, then why the debate whether he should be on the pitch of not?

11.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 18:03:51
They are doing exactly what they have been told to do.

12.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 18:24:03
glt59 has to be Harry trolling.

13.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 18:30:45
@GLT, it doesn't matter that they were or weren't on a yellow. That should not be a factor as to a ref giving out a booking.

14.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 18:24:05
Beckers I 100% agree, everyone seems to think that consistency means giving a yellow for every foul which is not the case and we really don’t want! When sky and by sports etc put their spin on these situations they show two tackles and compare them like they are an isolated incident rather than looking at the game as a whole. I felt against Everton the ref did relatively well and was lenient as far as he could be…for people who disagree look back over the match and count how many cards the ref could have given ‘ if he was consistent’.

15.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 18:46:08
Can someone please explain to me how Rodri got 3 match ban, after all didn’t he have his hands on a player’s throat? Isn’t that deemed violent conduct? I believe he only served 3 match ban, apologies if I’m incorrect, I didn’t see the incident but generally that what was reported.

TY.

16.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 18:47:10
Taurus01, notice that nobody responded to glt59's first post so he tried again and still no response.

Give it a rest, glt59. We see you coming.

17.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 20:33:12
For me the problem isn't just the referees, but the players too. I know I've said this on here recently. Conning the ref has become a tactic. I'm watching Spurs now and Maddison has already been on the ground I think 3 times in the first 12 minutes. The kid has talent but chooses to spend half the match on his backside conning and cheating.

We all say that Salah doesn't get the fouls that he deserves and I agree. The lad fights to stay on his feet and he's got to be the most physically played player in the league. Yes at times he goes down easy but 95% of the time he's manhandled and he rides the challenges. It's great to see him do that especially when it ends with a moment of magic which is so often has with him. But players like him are so few and far between now.

Riding a challenge and staying on your feet used to be a badge of honor for the toughest of players especially midfielders kicking lumps out of one another back in the day. Now we have so called hard cases falling about, slamming the floor, waving their arms for medical help etc. The game is much poorer for it.

What I've found is that if someone like Mo rides a challenge, it's no free kick. If the player goes down, the refs are pre-programmed to blow their whistle and the players know this. Players are just basically cheats now and it's a result of the rule makers of the game trying to protect players which I get. Nobody wants to see players get serious injuries etc. But it's a responsibility for the players to play fair, play hard and not try to take advantage of the incompetent refs. The game is a much poorer spectacle for me and at times I have a hard time watching it. The art of defending is a lost one.

Sadly it won't go back in the other direction but only get worse. We just have to accept that or stop watching. The game at its best is still the best game in the world (golf close second lol) so we keep watching. But for me the refs are in a terrible situation but they don't help themselves either with some of their shocking decisions, especially in the VAR era.

If the players played like they used to and stopped falling about, the refs would have a much easier job and the games would flow much better. Just my 2 cents.

18.) 23 Oct 2023
23 Oct 2023 20:52:04
And I'll add that I haven't watched the game from the weekend only the highlights. I thought Young's second wasn't a yellow. Not malicious and not a ton of contact. Free kick move on.

19.) 24 Oct 2023
24 Oct 2023 16:02:12
The consistency is wild though. What is deemed a red card in one match doesn't even warrant a yellow or a VAR check in the next - yet each week, the likes of Dermot Gallagher explains how identical incidents are 'correct' decisions based on 'another re-interpretation of the rules that completely contradicts what he said only a week ago'

The pundits too are a major issue. How many times do we see a huge furore over a nothing issue - such as the Jota penalty against Palace last season - they spend ages going on and on how it is a disgrace etc, etc. Then, the next game up shows the likes of Harry Kane or Sterling blatantly diving to win a penalty. Is that then too a disgrace? Nope, 'clever play there' is the verdict given - again, consistency people.

It is either a bad tackle or not, perhaps mistimed etc - intent should be looked at.

It is either a handball or not. The rule used to be hand to ball or ball to hand - not a tough rule! The Keane incident, he moves it outward as the ball is struck - hand to ball and penalty. If it's by his side and the player hits his hand with the ball then no penalty! Simples.

So, with VAR these should be easier to spot. I mean the Rodri handball against Everton should have been spotted! Weirdly as well, in that same season, City got a penalty against Wolves - the defender jumped with his hands above his head when the ball was crossed. Every replay showed the ball hit him on the ribs - the decision? Handball and penalty to City! Honestly ridiculous.

It should not matter which player is involved.
It should not matter what club is involved.
Decisions for identical incidents should not differ - it really should not be this difficult!

These incidents that infuriate fans are so obvious it is inconceivable to see how the officials somehow do not see what the millions of fans have seen, watching the exact same replays - some of these decisions can only be classed in the 'what the holy f*** was that! ' type and are just baffling.

20.) 24 Oct 2023
24 Oct 2023 18:45:47
Yep Bill what used to be black and white is now very much grey. Even simple decisions such as handball. Overcomplicate things and lo and behold things become complicated. Who would have thought it?!