Ex-FIFA official delivers ‘perfect’ point of view on the incident in Leeds United v Arsenal clash
Leeds United slid into the relegation zone on Sunday (8 May) after falling to Arsenal 2-1 at The Emirates Stadium.
Things were already looking bleak after former Whites player Eddie Nketiah scored twice in the first ten minutes, but the speed bump quickly turned into a mountain.
Usually solid defender Luke Ayling threw himself into an unnecessary tackle on Gabriel Martinelli and was awarded a straight red card after a VAR assessment, and Jesse Marsch’s team could not recover despite Diego Llorente’s goal in the second half.
Former FIFA referee Dermot Gallagher had no concerns with the final verdict and believes the VAR method performed well.
“Definitely (the right decision). The process is perfect as the referee [Chris Kavanagh], for whatever reason, does not see this angle of the speed he is coming in, he certainly does not see the two-footed tackle,” he said on Sky Sports.
“You see him going across the ground like he does, he is out of control, there is no way he can stop himself.
“It is a dangerous tackle anyhow, when Chris is sent to the screen, he does not take long to look as the VAR [John Brooks] has said, ‘look, in my opinion, you need to look at this again, I think it is a bad tackle, he has gone two-footed, he is out of control.’
“The referee has looked, it does not take much of a second look to see the second angle from behind, red card for me.”
Ayling’s season is now over because there is no chance for the team to win an appeal for such a heinous tackle.
Such a significant brain fog in the Premier League may have never been witnessed before, and Marsch will be questioning the defensive regular back at Thorp Arch if he didn’t while in London.
A tough boss would have forced him find his own way back to Yorkshire and left him to fend for himself in London.
Ayling now has plenty of time to reflect on what he achieved in the capital over the weekend, and he’ll need to return next season with a true fire in his belly if he wants to keep his spot in the squad.
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Ex-FIFA official delivers ‘perfect’ point of view on the incident in Leeds United v Arsenal clash
