As Liverpool appealed the red card shown to Alexis Mac Allister in the Bournemouth win, a former Premier League referee has pleaded his case.
As reported by This Is Anfield’s David Lynch, Liverpool have now notified the FA of their intention to appeal Mac Allister’s red card.
The midfielder was sacked just before an hour in Saturday’s 3-1 win for a soft tackle on Ryan Christie with the decision not overturned by VAR.
However, they are now hoping to avoid a three-game ban and dispose of Mac Allister for Sunday after receiving support in the process.
Dermot Gallagher, former Premier League referee and now Sky Sports cover story, has explained why he believes the tackle was ‘not a red card’.
“I think the problem here for me is that the ref thinks it’s a high tackle, but it only becomes a high tackle because both players are there,” Gallagher said.
“If you look, the boot catches him in the ankle. “If his foot was on the ground and he still catches it in the same spot, it’s not a high tackle.
“I think he mislead the referee, that they both had their feet on the ground.
Asked if he thought Liverpool should appeal the decision, Gallagher said:
“They should convince the jury that it was a clear and obvious error by the referee.”
The notion of “clear and obvious” is one that has had a negative impact on the way matches are refereed, with the VAR point being diluted by bureaucracy.
Mac Allister’s challenge to Christie, after looking at the various angles available on the footage, was clearly not worthy of a red card.
However, another former referee who now works at Sky Sports, Mike Dean, explained why he felt it was “not a bad decision” by referee Thomas Bramall. “He went pretty high. There’s not a lot of power in the challenge, but he took it pretty high,” Dean explained.
“It’s just a lazy leg, he probably doesn’t need to accept the challenge. His foot is quite high, he’s grabbed it by the shin.
“It’s not a bad decision by the referee. He came in with his studs uncovered, hit him on the shin. It’s not a bad decision.
“The VAR would have thought about it, happy with Tom’s decision, the game continues”.
