LONDON : Referee Admits Sending Off Rice Was a Tough Decision, Premier League referee Chris Kavanagh conceded he ‘didn’t like’ showing Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice a red card for kicking the ball away during the draw against Brighton & Hove Albion last month, but had no choice.
“Second yellow, for me. I had no choice, he knocks the ball away.
The Premier League hope the show will help fans understand the processes involved in decision-making by on-field and VAR officials, following intense criticism last season.
Webb, who is the chief operating officer of referees’ body the PGMOL, agreed that Kavanagh was correct to send off Rice.
Footage showed Calvert-Lewin had actually trodden on the foot of a Brighton defender Lewis Dunk, not the other way round.
“Sometimes the referee’s call will be clearly and obviously wrong and in this case it was,” Webb said.
“So that’s a good example of a situation where the referee’s call was wrong and it needed intervention by the VAR.”
