In Chelsea's game against Tottenham Hotspur, referee Atwell made a controversial decision. After sending off Hakim Ziyech with a red card, Atwell removed the red card after looking back in slow motion.
In the first minute of first-half stoppage time, Richarlison was fouled in midfield, triggering a scuffle between the two players, Emerson rushed over and intentionally or unintentionally bumped into Ziyech, who then reached out and slapped Emerson in the face, and the Tottenham defender fell on the grass.
The famous journalist Alan Smith immediately pointed out, "The atmosphere of the game has been brewing, and a little spark can turn into a fire. Ziyech did hit Emerson in the face. ”
After communicating with the assistant referee, Atwell showed Emerson and Kai Havertz a yellow card respectively. After being alerted by the video assistant referee, Atwell showed Ziyech another red card, and despite his disbelief, Ziyech walked off the pitch.
At that moment, Atwell returned to the sidelines to watch slow motion before making a change in decision, removing the red card and showing him a yellow card to Hakim Ziyech. Sky Sports noted, "It's unbelievable, it's a mess. ”
Is this the right decision? Alan Smith said, "I think it's quite a break, it's a push rather than a punch. Sky Sports analyzed, "It looks like Ziyech first touched Emerson's shoulder and then slid his hand to the other person's face." It's hard to say whether Ziyech was deliberately slapping his opponent. ”
At half-time, the home fans let out a huge boo, apparently directed at the referee. In fact, the crux of this change is why the assistant video referee did not step in to make the decision before Atwell showed him a red card, and did not ask Atwell to watch slow motion until after the red card was shown.
Martin Taylor, a veteran reporter for Sky Sports, analyzed, "I think he finally made the right decision, and that's what VAR is for. Legendary goalscorer Hasselbaink also said, "The referee did a great job. I think it was the right decision, but Ziyech was lucky. It is worth mentioning that Kane, who knocked down Kepa, also escaped punishment.