A huge twist in the race for the Premier League title took place in the contest between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Arsenal at the Molineux Stadium as Gunners left-back Myles Lewis-Skelly was controversially awarded a red card.
In the 42nd minute of play, with the score level at 0-0, Arsenal’s corner was cleared by Wolves, who looked to go on the break down the other end. But, as Matt Doherty looked to break, the 18-year-old stuck out a leg which tripped up the Irishman and brought him down, and was subsequently awarded a straight red card by Michael Oliver for doing so.
A cynical tackle? Sure. However, the controversy lies over the fact that the tackle took place 30 yards out from Wolves’ goal, and that Arsenal players were powering to get back and stop the attack. As such, denial of a goalscoring opportunity could not have been a factor, which means it was likely given for serious foul play, something which was confirmed by the Premier League Match Centre on X.
Upon initial replay, it didn’t look like a dangerous foul. However, the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) team had a long look at the challenge, and upheld the initial on-field decision.
On Sky Sports’ Gilette Soccer Saturday, former referee Mike Dean – who was looking closely at the incident himself – had the following to say:
“I’ve got a still image here, and I can see why Michael Oliver has given a straight red. He’s gone to kick him but he’s actually gone with his studs and raked down his achilles, so I can see why Michael Oliver has given it. I’ve got the still image and I can show you later, but I can see why he’s given the red card now that I’ve seen that.”
With Lewis-Skelly’s sending off, this marks the fourth red card for Arsenal as a team in the 2024/25 season. They will now have to do their best to fend off Wolves with a man disadvantage for the entire second-half. Whether this will have an impact on the final result, remains to be seen.
