‘Very lucky’ – Dermot Gallagher shares verdict on contentious incident in WBA clash v Villa
Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher has claimed that Aston Villa defender Kortney Hause should have seen red during his side’s game against West Brom.
Hause fouled Grady Diangana in the first half of Sunday’s game and was awarded a yellow card by referee Martin Atkinson.
The challenge was a nasty one as Hause’s studs made contact with Diangana’s shin, speaking on Sky Sports’ Ref Watch, Gallagher said the defender was ‘very lucky’ to avoid a dismissal.
Gallagher said, “Hause is very lucky. He’s caught the player on the shin and gone down to the ankle – you could see his ankle bend.
“The referee on the field hasn’t quite seen it like that, and VAR has looked at it and felt that it was just within the threshold. If he had sent the referee to the monitor, he may well have reached a different decision, but we don’t know.
“On that occasion, I think Hause is very lucky to have escaped a red card.”
Albion captain Jake Livermore received his marching orders a few minutes before Hause made his poor challenge.
Livermore was sent off after Atkinson had a second look at the pitch-side VAR monitor but he wasn’t asked to take a second look at Hause’s challenge.
This shows a shocking lack of consistency from the VAR officials as there wasn’t too much of a difference between the two challenges.
Albion’s red card had a significant impact on the outcome of the game as Villa made their man advantage count with an eventual 3-0 win.
All Baggies fans want from VAR is consistency but that is currently not being delivered by the Premier League and its referees.
It isn’t too much to ask when you can see VAR being used so effectively in the other top football leagues in Europe.
In other West Brom news, some fans blasted on Baggies player after their poor performance against the Villains.
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