Opening image: Szoboszlai didn’t even look for the ball against Arsenal Photo: MTI/EPA Adam Vaughan
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Arsenal fans have been sulking continuously since the start of the season,
because they believe that the English referees do not judge according to a unified understanding, they do not measure with the same standard, especially in the case of football players who kick the ball before bringing it into a new game.
The Gunners’ supporters mainly complain that while their favorites Declan Rice (against Brighton) and Leonard Trossard (against Manchester City) also received their second yellow card for kicking the ball, and with that they were sent off, while for example Dominik Szoboszlai of Liverpool In the home match against Nottingham Forest – this match is primarily memorable because the Merseyside club suffered its only defeat of the season so far in this match – he did not receive a warning for kicking the ball.
The head of the English football referees, Howard Webb, stood up for Dominik Szoboszlai Photo: sportcasting.com
Howard Webb, the former world number one referee, who currently works as the head of English football referees, spoke about the above cases. During his active career, the professional who conducted both the BL final and the World Championship final said: “Regarding kick-off cases, we ask the referees to examine how they may affect the other team’s chances of restarting the game. Regarding, for example, the cases of Trossard and Szoboszlai: the former happened during Manchester City’s free kick, and moreover, when Arsenal were leading 2-1.” .
“And Szoboszlai actually put his own team at a disadvantage by flicking the ball in the 94th minute, so it would have been crazy to punish him” argued Webb.
Earlier, Mandiner also reported on this case, noting that kicking the ball does not always mean an automatic yellow card. The rulebook states: “IF, IN THE JUDGMENT OF THE PLAYER, the ball is kicked off with the intention of delaying the game or unsportsmanlikeness, i.e. clearly with the intention of delaying time, then the player must be warned”
