Tosin Adarabioyo of Chelsea avoided an early red card against Liverpool despite bringing down Diogo Jota in his own half at Anfield.
In the fifth minute, Adarabioyo fouled Jota when the forward surged in front of him to meet a long ball, and it appeared that he might be sent off.
Despite the fact that the centre defender was the last man, replays revealed that the floated pass over the top was sinking toward the side of the pitch, implying that a goal-scoring opportunity – a violation punishable by a red card – had not been denied.
The offence was similar to William Saliba’s dismissal in Arsenal’s 2-0 defeat to Bournemouth yesterday, leaving fans perplexed by the lack of consistency.
Saliba was judged to be the last man when he brought down Evanilson at Vitality Stadium, and he received a straight red card.
Despite pulling down Diogo Jota, Chelsea defender Tosin Adarabioyo did not receive a red card.
The center defender (left) was not assessed to be the last man and received a yellow card.
The main difference between the two occurrences was that Levi Colwill was thought to be covering for Adarabioyo when Jota rushed forward.
On Saturday, Saliba dropped back after a loose ball, but officials didn’t think Ben White, the nearest defender, was close enough to race back.
Robert Jones first gave Saliba a yellow card, but the referee upgraded his decision to a red after being urged to consult his pitchside monitor.
The Frenchman will now face a one-match suspension, ironically at Anfield.
Jota was pulled off with an injury that appeared to be sustained during his struggle with Adarabioyo, but Liverpool seized the lead thanks to Mohamed Salah’s calm penalty.
Former Premier League referee Mike Dean believes the decision not to send off Adarabioyo was correct due to the last-man rule.
‘Tosin is so clumsy,’ Dean commented during Sky Sports’ live coverage.
‘[Levi] Colwill gets near to the ball as it travels away. There’s too much doubt there; the ball is heading towards the assistant referee.
The incident resembled William Saliba’s sending off against Bournemouth.
Saliba fouled Evanilson, and referee Robert Jones escalated the initial yellow to a red card.
However, many Arsenal fans took to social media to express their displeasure.
One said: “Tosin Adarabioyo was given a yellow card instead of a red card for no reason other than the fact that he does not play for Arsenal Football Club.”
‘Tosin Adarabioyo was not sent off despite committing the same offense as Saliba yesterday,’ another railed. ‘UNBELIEVEABLE.’
Another user uploaded a photo of VAR chief Howard Webb in the Bournemouth stands, captioned ‘The difference between the Saliba red and the Tosin yellow.’
