Alan Shearer accused of 'going soft' after response to Arsenal controversy
Danny Murphy accused fellow pundit Alan Shearer of having "gone soft" after the ex-England star argued Mateo Kovacic should have been sent off against Arsenal.
Manchester City midfielder Kovacic was shown a yellow card for a foul on Martin Odegaard, with a VAR check concluding the challenge wasn't worthy of more severe punishment. However, the Croatian later escaped a second yellow card for a foul on Declan Rice, with Shearer considering him fortunate to stay on.
In the end, it didn't impact the result, with Gabriel Martinelli scoring a late winner for Arsenal. However, that didn't stop Shearer and Murphy locking horns in the Match of the Day 2 studio.
“I think he was very fortunate to stay on," Shearer said of Kovacic. "The first tackle there, I think it’s bordering on amber, and he perhaps got away with it being a straight red card.”
“He’s gone soft there, hasn’t he?” was Murphy's response. Presenter Mark Chapman cut him off, though, with a quick “No. Danny”
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“When you’re on a yellow card you can’t tackle like that there," Shearer continued. "He’s been fortunate there, I think that should have been a second yellow card.”
Did Mateo Kovacic deserve a red card? Have your say in the comments section
Mateo Kovacic escaped a second yellow card against Arsenal (Getty Images)Murphy recognised recent refereeing decisions might support the case for a red. He didn't back down on the specitic call, though, defending referee Michael Oliver's decision to leave Kovacic on the pitch.
“I actually like what the referee’s done there," the former Liverpool midfielder continued. "Not every tackle you miss should be a yellow. Michael Oliver’s a good ref and he’s from a tough part of the world so he knows what he’s on about.”
"That’s the problem, exactly that, and that’s where people get frustrated," he said when asked about refereeing calls in other games."Recent events we’ve seen, that’s two yellows, but I’m glad he [Oliver] made the decisions he did."
Comparisons were made between Kovacic's challenges and those which saw Liverpool pair Curtis Jones and Diogo Jota dismissed in the Reds' loss at Tottenham. Jones' yellow card was upgraded to red after a VAR check, while Jota was shown two yellows in quick succession.
"As soon as it went to VAR and having seen it slowed down, I thought red card," former Arsenal forward and Sky Sports pundit Theo Walcott said of the first foul. "It’s a nasty tackle and for me it’s a red card, without any question.
"That’s not me putting my Arsenal head on, but I think he is endangering the player.I just felt like he was never going to win the ball and he’s come at that angle."
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