Former Premier League striker and BBC pundit Alan Shearer has criticized the officiating during Southampton’s game against Leicester City on Saturday.
The game was a 5 goal thriller in which Leicester came back from 2 goals down to win 3-2. Cameron Archer gave the Saints the lead after 10 minutes, before Joe Aribo made it 2-0 around the 30-minute mark.
Facundo Buonanotte got the Foxes back into the game in the second half and ten minutes later, they were awarded a penalty after Ryan Fraser fouled Vardy, which VAR deemed to be denying a goal-scoring opportunity. Fraser was sent off and the Leicester forward, which could be retired at the end of this seasonburied the penalty to make it 2-2.
Leicester City completed the turnaround right at the death, with Jordan Ayew scoring the winner in the 98th minute of the match.
Alan Shearer criticizes Anthony Taylor’s officiating during Southampton vs Leicester City
Alan Shearer criticized the officiating during the game, suggesting that Saints should also have been awarded a penalty.
The incident in question was when Leicester player Paul Onuachu appeared to be fouled, which was held for several seconds. Shearer did not hold back in his criticism of Anthony Taylor’s decision.
When asked by MOTD if Saints should have had a penalty, he said (as quoted daily echo):
“Absolutely … the word we’re hearing is that Anthony Taylor saw the celebration, but it was of no consequence.”
“It was deemed not to be game-changing. He took it for about five seconds, which means it has to be game-changing. There has to be a consequence.”
“If he doesn’t hold it, there is every possibility that he will challenge for this ball, he can even get there before the goalkeeper. I think it’s a bad decision by the referee and the VAR.”
Russel Martin’s future at Southampton is uncertain after a poor start
Southampton have had a bad start to the season. They are yet to win a single match, having lost 7 and drawn 1. They currently sit 19th in the table, with just 1 point.
Manager Russel Martin’s future at the club is uncertain as pressure mounts. Recent weeks have seen a number of managers linked with the Saints job, including former Brighton and Chelsea manager Graham Potter.
