14 December 2023 , 22:30
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Referees’ chief Howard Webb has warned managers and players to set an “example” to stop a repeat of the shameful scenes in Turkey happening in English football.
Webb branded the attack on Turkish referee Halil Umut Meler “outrageous” after the official was hit by MKE Ankaragucu president Faruk Koca. But the sorry truth is that it has happened at grassroots level and a manager’s rant or a player abusing a referee is only one step away from escalating into full scale violence on the football pitch.
The Premier League, EFL and Football Association this week issued a joint statement to highlight the need for respect and to also highlight a shocking 88 per cent rise in bookings for dissent after a major crackdown by referees.
But that has not stopped high-profile bosses and players confronting referees this season as Manchester City have been charged with failing to control their players after Simon Hooper was surrounded. City star Erling Haaland’s furious reaction remains one of the most memorable pictures of the season so far.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta escaped punishment despite an outspoken attack on referee Stuart Attwell while up and down the country managers regularly challenge officials and their decisions. Former Premier League official Webb, now in charge of the referees’ body PGMOL, has urged managers and players to be more respectful and accept key decisions - or run the risk of the game “sliding” out of control.
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Webb said: “In terms of what we saw in Turkey, it was pretty outrageous really and I hope we never see that again at any level. Unfortunately we know it does happen at grassroots level, we do everything we can to set the right example at the highest level of the game. There needs to be an acceptance of decisions.
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“You won’t always agree with every one of them because that’s simply down to the game and it creates subjectivity and decisions that have always created debate and discussion.
“Sometimes decisions might be wrong, there might be errors, but again we have to accept that officials do make errors on the field and we have to take a mature attitude to this and I think that’s part of the reason why collectively in the English game something had to be done about declining behaviour standards.
“Simon Hooper still took action against Haaland over the way he reacted and when he dissented against the decision so we have said, regardless of whether you believe the decision is right or not, you have to take action. And then there is a line even beyond that and if that is crossed you have to take even stronger action.
“It takes a bit of time, we’ve seen it happen for years where it’s been the norm for players to react in a certain way. Not just in the moment but things like running at referees, gesticulating in a very obvious way. This year, I’ve seen less of it. I look at dozens of clips from all the leagues we serve and I’ve seen less of it.
“But we’ve got to keep the foot on the gas because otherwise it will slide and we can’t allow that to happen and I think the events in Turkey really are an example of how we have to continue to work together to prevent that type of thing from ever happening here again.”
Webb also revealed that the Premier League are looking at bringing in semi-automated offsides for next season which should reduce VAR delays and help eradicate any errors.
Webb added: “We’re looking at that behind the scenes. We’re testing various technologies around semi-automated offside to see how they could positively impact the Premier League. We’ll continue doing that in the coming weeks and months and then a decision will be taken, I would anticipate, towards the end of the season.”