Sicario2 - Tier 1

Ok, that tweet has really triggered me.

Though the level of injustice is obviously not the same, that statement from PGMOL is like something you'd get from a police union after one of their officers are recorded murdering someone. It's all about diverting attention to make themselves the victim.

It's no surprise Howard Webb was a part of South Yorkshire Police, one of the most corrupt, unprincipled and incompetent police forces in the country for the last 50 years or so.

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CPM because it's us. When its Liverpool they put out apologies. When it's United they overturn the decision. When it's Arsenal they double down.

CPM I just don't get why they're circling the wagons around this decision.

There's a fair bit at stake for these guys. It's being shown time and time again there's a big quality and skill deficit in English refereeing. Meanwhile PGMOL has managed to tightly wedge itself into the Premier League media landscape.

The leaked Coote video spoke volumes with its jealousy: these top flight referees are very aware they're the only people who get near the pitch on Premier League match days who aren't multi-millionaires.

From the rest of the sport's vantage point, there's no need for PGMOL to be continued in its current form or under current leadership. For fans there seems very little reason to think Howard Webb can run a better refereeing body than your local publican.

It adds up to a paranoid and vulnerable organisation desperate to weld itself to an established power base, and broker favours in return for protection. Whether explicit or otherwise, PGMOL has been doing just that. They're accordingly defensive about the status quo from the pitch to the boardroom.

I’d even forgotten that this is the season where Saliba conceded a penalty for fairly contesting a header.

    Sky Sports are deleting loads of videos referencing this, something is going on behind the scenes.

      JazzG my assumption is that PGMOL have told Sky and other news outlets that their coverage is fueling online rage against Michael Oliver. They are trying to turn themselves into victims and kill the original issue which is their incompetence and bias.

        Arseblog spot on there.

        Claudius Probably right, they are going full expensive crisis PR management mode on this one. I think they've realised it looks so blatant they can't hide it.

        It's such a bad decision, even Dermot Gallagher has said it should have been a yellow card.

        Even ex-refs struggling to justify it.

        But adding about how toxic it has become, you know what else is toxic? When football clubs who are there fighting for championships against oil rich clubs get robbed of points by fucking refs who want to be the centre of attention. Arteta has to deal with shit from the media and our own fans as a result, I don't see anyone running a sympathy campaigns for him!

        Do you think this MLS sending off will be net positive or net negative for us in regards to future ref decisions?

        Surely ref’s will think twice after this whole drama with Oliver.

          Lol, that's very naive of you to think that Sicario.

          They are not held accountable by anyone. It will happen again, no doubt.

          The FA has to have someone independent review the ref's performances and shit decisions like these need to be punished by demoting to the lower leagues/match bans for the officials and new (foreign if needed?) refs need to be brought in to referee the games.

          They can cry about online hate as much as they want, but if this goes on like it has, someone will eventually go full Luigi on these refs.

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            You'd hope so but they seem to hold us in contempt and seem to think of themselves as being above the law so I wonder how long that would last. Behind closed doors I hope Arsenal are talking to them about this and reminding them that if they make a big deal about this, it could be potentially very damaging for them.

            the referees are behaving like someone who is not used to being criticized or questioned. like police might do when they've beaten up another defenseless black guy. they close ranks and find fault in the protest. BLM is a radical movement. the whole culture around PGMOL needs to change. they need to become much more peripheral in the game, and see themselves as an enabler, not an authority

              Was nice to see one coach and Arteta immediately shepherd MLS away from the fourth official to protect him. Hopefully he’s not traumatised

              Claudius I think the references to Howard Webb and his connection to the South Yorkshire police force are quite interesting in this regard. They're probably the most infamous force in the land.

              Calling in favours from mates in the media, Holt showing as usual what a bellend he is

              Just build an AI model on Pierluigi Collina and be done with it. Expand the semi automated technology to include all decisions and make it very binary what is and isn't a rule breach. Remove all subjectivity and interpretation out of the game and apply the letter of the law on all occasions.

              Claudius there was a brief moment a couple of seasons ago where PGMOL would apologise but they ended up making an apology every other week. So they’ve doubled down instead.

              • est likes this.

              You can’t bullshit a bullshitter. Interesting timing here post Oliver gate. I’ve never seen a bunch of weak humans as worse as these in my life. Wasn’t Coote pictured with Thai prossies? Hahahaha

              • IBL replied to this.