Former Premier League referee Dermott Gallagher reflects on a couple of key moments from the weekend's Premier League fixtures. Regarding Liverpool's match against Arsenal, Conor Gallagher disagreed with the decision of the assistant referee (VAR) not to award a penalty when Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard handballed in the box. Conor Gallagher believes that whether Odegaard slipped or not, it should be considered a penalty. He also criticizes the complex rules of handball, arguing that trying to define it precisely makes the decision-making process more difficult.
Conor Gallagher supported referee Chris Cavanagh's decision not to award Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold a penalty for a foul on Kai Havertz, believing it was a fair shoulder-to-shoulder scramble. He also believes Arsenal striker Bukayo Saka should not have been shown a second yellow card for a late foot foul because it was unintentional and he touched the ball. Conor Gallagher believes Nottingham Forest defender Willy Boehly was sent off for two yellow cards and said Boehly's tackle looked clean. In addition, Conor Gallagher supported the decision not to award a penalty to Nottingham Forest when Ryan Yates' shot hit the Bournemouth player's hand and he felt it was unfair to punish such incidents unanimously.
Conor Gallagher endorsed the dispossession of Everton striker Dominic Calvert-Lew for a foul on Tottenham, stressing the importance of VAR notifying the referee to review incidents that may have been missed. Finally, Conor Gallagher supported the decision to cancel the goal against Aston Villa for a foul on the goalkeeper against Sheffield United, although he also acknowledged that there were difficulties with timing to allow the game to continue before the reset. Conor Gallagher endorsed the referee's decision not to award Reem Sterling a penalty in Chelsea's game against Wolves as the referee had previously whistled for a foul. Once the referee stops the game, the subsequent events become irrelevant.