“That’s the worst decision I’ve ever seen in Premier League football history” - Micah Richards speaks up against Arsenal star Lewis-Skelly’s red card

Former Manchester City defender Micah Richards lambasted the referees for Myles Lewis-Skelly
Former Manchester City defender Micah Richards lambasted the referees for Myles Lewis-Skelly's red card against Wolves

Former Manchester City defender Micah Richards labeled Myles Lewis-Skelly's red card in Arsenal's 1-0 win over Wolves (January 25) as the 'worst decision' in Premier League history. The Englishman claimed that it was 'shocking' for him to see the decision not get overturned by VAR officials.

In the 43rd minute of the game, Lewis-Skelly stuck a foot out for a tackle, catching Matt Doherty and stopping Wolves' counter-attack. While many seem to think that there was no malicious intent from the 18-year-old, on-field referee Michael Oliver saw otherwise and gave him his marching orders.

The challenge can be seen at 0:34 in the video below -

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A tweet from the Premier League Match Centre asserted that Lewis-Skelly's challenge was deemed 'serious foul play' by the match officials. This implies that he will miss Arsenal's upcoming games against Manchester City, Leicester City, and Newcastle United.

Speaking on The Rest Is Football podcast after the game, Richards expressed his disgust at the decision. He said (via Metro):

"Michael Oliver, I like him. I think he’s a top referee... I understand the scrutiny that you guys are under, I understand it. But guys, that’s the worst decision I’ve ever seen in Premier League football history and I stick by it. This happens week in, week out... He (Oliver) makes a mistake and we all make mistakes, when we're doing our punditry we own up, don't we? How can I improve? Because that’s what any normal human being does."
"But how on earth they can go to VAR, look at a screen, look at it multiple times… not even a split second to look at it but ten seconds, 20 seconds, multiple different angles and they still think that is a red card. I don't like using the word "disgrace" because I feel like it's easy to throw that word out. But if you look at the magnitude of that decision, it was so poor and for them to double down on the decision, I just think it's shocking," Richards added.

With 47 points after 23 games (13 wins, eight draws, two losses), Arsenal currently sit second on the Premier League table behind runaway leaders Liverpool (53 points).


"It is that clear" - Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta's opinion on Myles Lewis-Skelly's red card vs Wolves

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta claimed that he was 'fuming' after young defender Myles Lewis-Skelly was shown a red card in a 1-0 win over Wolves.

Speaking to BBC after the game, the Spanish tactician said (via Eurosport):

"It is that clear that I leave it to you guys. I am absolutely fuming but I leave it with you. Because it is that obvious. I don't think my words are going to help."

Arteta was then asked if the Arsenal administration was considering an appeal to overturn the decision. He replied:

"That's for the club to decide what the best decision is. I think it's that obvious, maybe we don't even need to."

Up next, Arsenal will be in action in the UEFA Champions League against Spanish side Girona on Wednesday, January 29.

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Edited by Ankush Das
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