The FA has been called to review the incident that saw Manchester United star Bruno Fernandes appear to push an official during Sunday’s match against Liverpool. Former Premier League referee Keith Hackett cannot believe the Portugal international has got away without any punishment.
Cameras caught Fernandes appearing to push the assistant referee during the second half of the game at Anfield. The midfielder was understandably not in the greatest of moods as his team were on their way to their biggest loss in the Premier League era.
Erik ten Hag faced the prospect of seeing Fernandes banned to rub further salt into the wounds that were opened up by a 7-0 loss to their nearest rivals. However, it emerged on Monday that no action would be taken against Fernandes.
But Hackett says that does not set out a good precedent for future incidents involving players and officials. He claims there should be an immediate ban if a player touches an official, regardless of the severity of the incident.
Hackett wrote in the Telegraph: “The people making the decision for him not to face punishment will need to look at their processes here. The incident was not deemed serious enough to put in the referees’ report on the game so Fernandes escaped – but you cannot, in any circumstances, put your hands on an official.
“I would ban any player for touching an official for one match, and then the punishment can be increased in line with the severity of the offence. We all saw the video – and the VAR did too – and you can see Fernandes’ frustration, you can see his arm bend into pushing the assistant.
“He knew exactly what he was doing and him getting off sets the wrong precedent. I am simply amazed Fernandes does not face any further investigation or punishment and the FA have missed the point entirely – what message does this send out to officials, and players, at all levels?
‘This is the player’s idea…’ – Romano drops fresh claim on £53.5m Liverpool transfer target
Fabrizio Romano has said there is a ‘very good chance’ that one reported Liverpool transfer target could leave his current club in the summer.
However, the Italian added the caveat that Alexis Mac Allister – a player in whom the Reds have shown an interest (Football Insider) – will only be allowed to depart Brighton & Hove Albion for a premium.
Intriguingly, the Argentina midfielder’s father (who’s also his agent) was seen at Anfield recently when Jurgen Klopp’s team took on Real Madrid in the Champions League (Football Transfers).
Speaking on Fabrizio Romano’s Daily Briefing (via Sussex World), the journalist said: “I expect Alexis Mac Allister to have a very good chance to make his top club move in the summer, this is the player’s idea.
“But I’m also sure Brighton will be tough in the negotiations, as always. There are really many clubs following Mac Allister, at this stage everything is premature. I don’t expect him to move for less than €60m.”
It should come as no surprise that the Seagulls want at least €60m (£53.5m) for the World Cup winner, given their penchant for extracting sizeable fees for their prized assets.
The likes of Marc Cucurella, Ben White, Leandro Trossard and Yves Bissouma have all been sold on for significant sums (Transfermarkt), so Liverpool can expect to pay top dollar for the 24-year-old if they turn their reported interest into a concrete bid.
It’s interesting that Romano has said ‘the player’s idea’ is to ‘make his top club move in the summer’, as this would appear to contradict a recent claim from Mac Allister himself that he’s ‘enjoying’ himself at Brighton and is ‘not thinking about the future’ (TyC Sports, via Jacques Talbot on Twitter).
With another few months remaining until the transfer window opens again, we can expect to hear plenty more about the future of the in-demand Argentine between now and then.
BBC pundit says Man United star should be banned for what he did vs Liverpool
Chris Sutton has blasted Manchester United star Bruno Fernandes for one of his antics against Liverpool at the weekend.
The fixture on Sunday resulted in arguably the biggest shock of the season so far. There were a few people who predicted a Liverpool win – a convincing one even – but nobody expected a 7-0 hammering.
That, however, was what happened, and Fernandes has attracted a ton of criticism for more than one reason.
Chris Sutton says Bruno Fernandes should be banned for what he did vs Liverpool
From going down far too easily in the penalty box to falling to the ground while holding his face when Ibrahima Konate only touched his chest, Fernandes was involved in a lot at Anfield.
Manchester United fans have almost always had his back, but after Sunday, even some of the Old Trafford faithful were far from happy with the Portugal international’s antics.
What irked Sutton, however, was when Fernandes put his hands on the linesman. The Manchester United skipper appeared to push the official away near the corner flag, and no action was taken against him.
Even the FA have decided to let it go, and Sutton is absolutely furious. He believes Fernandes deserves a lengthy ban for his action on Sunday, which he thinks has gone unnoticed.
He said on The Monday Night Club: “I don’t think this has been highlighted enough. The push on the assistant, I don’t think it’s been highlighted enough.
“He should be seeing a lengthy ban for that.”
When asked if he thinks it was ‘that bad’, Sutton replied: “Yeah, I do! Where does this stop then? A lot of focus on grassroots football and the decline in referees at grassroots level, so if people see that and Sunday League players see that, they will think that’s the norm so where does it stop?
“I thought that was an absolute disgrace and I don’t think enough has been said about that.”
TBR View:
The FA laws clearly state that “physical or aggressive behaviour” against a match official warrants a red card.
An argument can be made that Fernandes wasn’t overly aggressive, but he put his hands on the linesman, and that, in our opinion, deserves punishment.
Sutton’s comments are a fair one, but luckily for Manchester United fans, the FA have let Fernandes off the hook and he’s eligible to play against Southampton in their next Premier League game.
Up next for Manchester though, is a big game against Real Betis in the next round of the Europa League.