Five problems with Myles Lewis-Skelly's red card in Arsenal's win against Wolves – Premier League hits and misses | Football News

Five problems with Lewis-Skelly's red card

Arsenal beat Wolves 1-0, but Myles Lewis-Skelly's first-half red card for a tackle on Matt Doherty dominated the headlines. Here are five problems we found with Michael Oliver's decision and VAR:

First – you don't see red cards for that. “He's 70 yards from his goal,” Tim Sherwood said. That's the starting point. How can there be a serious foul play on the edge of the Wolves box?

And if it's a serious contact foul play on Doherty, then he has a split second to make that challenge. How could an 18-year-old imagine that? More common sense was needed.

Two – VAR gave it. Serious foul play was checked and confirmed by VAR Darren England. See above for a common sense reference to an official who had replays, slow motion and time to fully assess it.

Three – Joao Gomes' challenge was probably worse. It is simply baffling how the Wolves midfielder was booked for a seemingly bigger, more aggressive and dangerous challenge and Lewis-Skelly was given his marching orders. Consistency did not last even half a match.

Four – Michael Oliver apparently doesn't like to “negatively impact games by overdoing it”.. That's what PGMOL head Howard Webb said last season when Mateo Kovačić avoided a red card for Man City at Arsenal. Should he have sent Lewis-Skelly there?

Five – More strange dismissals for Arsenal – Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard were both sent off for kicking the ball – but have we seen them since? Joao Pedro's penalty for Brighton despite William Saliba seemingly winning the ball. Arsenal have been making strange decisions this season and the weight seems to be heavily stacked against them – so it's no wonder their fans are becoming increasingly frustrated.
Blitz himself

Alexander-Arnold lights up Anfield

In games where Liverpool suffer so many attacks and are tasked with breaking down opponents, there is no better creator in world football than Trent Alexander-Arnold. He was in his element in the 4-1 win against Ipswich, who could only stand and admire him at times.

Spraying the ball around the pitch in his usual effortless style and breaking lines with incredible passes. There was a cross that he hit on the half-volley from almost the sideline that was so close that Luis Diaz knocked it home. That would be the assist of the season. This guy sees things other players don't.

Grabbed the assist for Cody Gakpo's goal with a gorgeous cross that teams better than Ipswich wouldn't have been able to defend, and he deserved his goal too, but one bounced off the crossbar. In this mood, in this exhibition game, it was a privilege to watch. Liverpool fans may have to enjoy these performances while they can.
Lewis Jones

Alexander the Great conquers Saint Mary

There is absolutely no stopping Alexander Isak at this point. To say he is in inspired form would be an understatement, but any praise that comes his way is fully justified after Newcastle's 3-1 win against Southampton.

The best striker in the Premier League right now? He just has to be.

Since Newcastle's 3-3 draw with Liverpool on December 4, Eddie Howe's side have played 12 games. Isak only drew an empty field twice. He now has 19 goals in 25 games in all competitions this season. Seven more and he will set a new personal record, surpassing last season's 25.

Records are starting to fall as well. His brace at St Mary's ensured he became the first Newcastle player to score in five successive Premier League away games, surpassing Peter Beardsley's previous club record of four in December 1993.

More importantly, his new tally of 48 Premier League goals is the joint-highest of any Swedish player in the competition, alongside Freddie Ljungberg, and he also moved ahead of team-mate Callum Wilson (47) as Newcastle's second-highest goalscorer in competition, behind Alan Shearer (148).

As Newcastle look to return to the top four, this electric form will be imperative.
Dan Long

O'Brien arrives as a coat of arms for Everton

David Moyes made a flawless return to the Everton dugout, but in celebrating his 700th game as a Premier League manager with a 1-0 win at Brighton, there is one key difference in the squad.

Jake O'Brien did not start a league game under Sean Dyche. Supporters questioned the £16.4m signing of the 23-year-old from Lyon when money was still tight.

However, after Leighton Baines used him in the FA Cup win over Peterborough, Moyes liked what he saw in the Republic of Ireland defender.

“I watched the game and I thought he did well,” Moyes said of the encounter. “He is a centre-half, but a lot of young central defenders are debuting as full-backs.

“I was one when I was at Celtic, for example. But if you look at a lot of centre-backs, sometimes midfielders might have to play wide. So Jake might have to at the moment. We've got two really good centre-backs, so to get him in, we tried to use him a bit as a full-back every now and then, sometimes playing a bit further.

“He's improving, he's got a long way to go, he's got a lot of things to do. I'm really happy with the two performances. He got into the team and we won two games. For the most part, he kept Kaoru Mitoma pretty quiet.”

O'Brien did the job impressively, first with Jesper Lindstrom in front of him and then a bit more of a reverse when Nathan Patterson was introduced. Everton's ability to keep clean sheets away from home predates Moyes' arrival, but now they have a coat of armour.
Ben Grounds

Iraola's magic has Bournemouth dreaming of Europe

Bournemouth were stunningly outstanding in their statement 5-0 home win over Nottingham Forest.

The quality of the goals, the free-flowing football and their defensive solidity shone through in a victory that will boost the belief that this joyous Bournemouth side can qualify for Europe.

Cherry boss Andoni Iraola is the architect of it all and he will no doubt be linked with bigger deals in the coming months with the magic he works on the south coast.

Bournemouth beat Forest to record their biggest top-flight win since April 2019. Iraola's seventh-placed side have now won four of their first seven this season, so their 12-game unbeaten run in all competitions is no fluke.

In a topsy-turvy Premier League season where the bigger sides have struggled, Bournemouth have taken full advantage and this stunning display will give them a scare.

Leaders Liverpool go to the Vitality Stadium, and Bournemouth expect another impressive victory.

Beat the Reds and Bournemouth will not only be seen as a European hope, but a genuine Champions League contender, especially with fifth place potentially being enough for Champions League qualification this season.
Declan Olley

The inevitable end cannot come soon enough for Southampton

Another week, another defeat, another step closer to what seems like inevitable relegation. Without wishing to sound like a broken record, this season has been just as miserable for Southampton – and far from over.

The record for the fewest points in a Premier League season is held by Derby, who picked up just 11 points in the 2007/08 season. Matching this or setting a new record entirely is still entirely possible.

But another record was set on Saturday – the Saints have now lost six consecutive home league games for the first time in their history. They haven't tasted a league win at home since November 2, when they beat Everton 1-0. In fact, it is their only league win of the season so far.

They have won just one of their last 36 Premier League games (D7 L28) and, when converted into three points for an all-time win, Saints' six points are the second-fewest after 23 league games, with only Bolton 1902/03 fewer in this stage (3).

Ivan Jurić certainly brought more fight to this team and they fought until the end, but without the results to go with it, it seems inevitable that it is getting closer.
Dan Long

Missed opportunity for Wolves

Strange game at Molineux. Wolves started well and looked set to frustrate Arsenal, with Pablo Sarabia even going close to giving the hosts the lead after his first-half effort crashed just wide of the bar.

The momentum seemed to shift after the red Lewis-Skelly – but not in the way you'd think.

Arsenal played as an 11-man team and even before Joao Gomes went off for his ill-advised tackle on Jurrien Timber, the Gunners looked like the only side capable of breaking the deadlock.

Forcing David Ray to only make one save when they had more players on the pitch is not good enough from Wolves. “We had difficulty playing, but after this we started playing again and breaking through the first line of pressure,” Pereira said after the game. “Then came the second yellow card.”

Wolves showed against Manchester United that they can punish teams 11-10, but they just didn't have the same drive, threat or determination on this occasion.

Now a strong opportunity to secure points in the fight for survival is slipping away.
Patrick Rowe