Chris Wilder lashes out as yet another refereeing decision goes against Sheffield United at Arsenal

Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder admitted he has been left bewildered by some of the refereeing decisions which have gone against his side this season after David Luiz inexplicably escaped a red card during the opening stages of their game against Arsenal.
By James Shield
Published 4th Oct 2020, 17:52 BST
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Luiz appeared certain to be dismissed less than five minutes into contest when he denied Oliver Burke a clear goal-scoring opportunity - pulling the United centre-forward’s shirt as he charged towards the penalty area, which allowed Bernd Leno time to dart off his line and clear.

But much to the visitors’ disgust, referee Lee Mason refused to even signal that a foul had been committed. After being informed by Mike Riley, the head of the Professional Game Match Officials Board, that John Egan had been mistakenly sent-off for the same offence at Aston Villa last month, Wilder made no attempt to hide his frustration afterwards.

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Questioning why VAR did not review the incident, he said: “He (Mason) has got to show courage. There’s actually five of them looking at it - the referee, his two assistants and two people in Stockley Park.

Arsenal's David Luiz with Sheffield United's Chris Wilder during the Premier League match at the Emirates Stadium, London. David Klein/SportimageArsenal's David Luiz with Sheffield United's Chris Wilder during the Premier League match at the Emirates Stadium, London. David Klein/Sportimage
Arsenal's David Luiz with Sheffield United's Chris Wilder during the Premier League match at the Emirates Stadium, London. David Klein/Sportimage
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“I saw what happened, my assistant saw what happened, my coach saw what happened and our entire bench saw what happened. Oli had his shirt pulled, you could see it move. But five people didn’t see anything happen. They seemed to be the only five.”

“Last season, at Spurs, we got a goal and after VAR had looked at it, they found that John Lundstram’s toenail was slightly offside,” Wilder continued. “That got sent to VAR. I thought VAR was brought in to make sure we got the correct decisions? When John got sent-off at Villa, they made the decision and now I’m told by Mike Riley it was a mistake.”

Wilder’s anger at Mason’s refusal to punish Luiz grew when Bukayo Saka and Nicolas Pepe later scored in quick succession for Arsenal before David McGoldrick reduced the deficit during the closing stages.

Referee Lee Mason ignores the players objections during the Premier League match at the Emirates Stadium, London. Simon Bellis/SportimageReferee Lee Mason ignores the players objections during the Premier League match at the Emirates Stadium, London. Simon Bellis/Sportimage
Referee Lee Mason ignores the players objections during the Premier League match at the Emirates Stadium, London. Simon Bellis/Sportimage

Having failed to engineer a equaliser, the result means United enter the international break on the back of four straight league defeats and still searching for their first points of the new campaign.

“Are we looking for all wins? Yes, but we have to,” Wilder said. “When you are struggling a bit, of course you want something to go for you. Do I think David Luiz should have been sent off? Yes.”

Related topics:Chris WilderVAR