BREAKING NEWS: England FA overturned Lewis-Skelly Red card, dismissed Micheal Oliver after his poor officiating against Arsenal
Jamie O’Hara has called for an ‘investigation’ into VAR following Arsenal teen Myles Lewis-Skelly’s controversial red card.
Lewis-Skelly was sent off by referee Michael Oliver late in the first half of Arsenal’s 1-0 win over Wolves at Molineux.
The 18-year-old tripped up Wolves’ Matt Doherty as he looked to spring a counter-attack following an Arsenal corner.
It was an incident that would typically be punished with a yellow card given it appeared to be a professional foul.
But Arsenal’s players were left flabbergasted when Oliver brandished a red.
Darren England, who was the VAR official for the contest, upheld Oliver’s decision as Lewis-Skelly’s tackle was deemed ‘serious foul play.’
The decision-making of Oliver and England to brandish and subsequently double down on the red card left O’Hara shaking his head, labelling it ‘one of the worst decisions I’ve ever seen.’
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However, the fact England had all the technology at his disposal and still came to the conclusion Lewis-Skelly deserved a red card was what prompted O’Hara to demand VAR ‘should be shut down’.
“Honestly, I’ve watched the replay and I’ve seen it in slo-mo,” O’Hara said on talkSPORT.
“It’s almost like he (Michael Oliver) couldn’t wait to get the red card out. It was unbelievable what I saw.
“For VAR to look at it and agree with him, it is absolutely disgraceful.
“In every replay you watch, you can see Lewis-Skelly sticks his foot out, he wants to take a booking for the team. Every footballer has done it, everyone. It’s not serious foul play, it’s a professional play. You take one for the team, you take a yellow and you move on.
O’Hara and fellow talkSPORT pundit Jason Cundy were shocked when Manchester City’s Rico Lewis was shown a second yellow against Crystal Palace for a challenge on Trevoh Chalobah.
However, replays showed it was Chalobah who made contact on Lewis rather than the other way around.
But given Lewis was shown a second yellow rather than a straight red, VAR could not intervene.
The issue of not being able to review sending offs that stem from a second yellow set Cundy off.
“VAR is… Look, it ain’t brilliant, it ain’t perfect, but it’s in the game and it’s going to stay,” Cundy said.
“Second yellow cards for a red have to be looked at by VAR. I don’t understand how a straight red can be looked at, yet a second yellow for a red can’t be. I don’t get that.
“Improve the game. If VAR is here to stay, right, and it is, improve the game, make it better, make it work. Because for me, that second yellow, it’s not a second yellow.”
Palace were also the beneficiaries of VAR earlier in the season against Leicester City.
Eagles marksman Jean-Philippe Mateta scored a 92nd-minute equaliser from the spot to rescue his side from 2-0 down, as the result ended 2-2.
