Former Premier League referee Mike Dean has come to the defence of current official David Coote after a contentious moment during Leicester City’s match against Aston Villa.
The incident occurred when Leicester, in search of their first win since returning to the Premier League, thought they had equalised through Jamie Vardy.
However, the ball had struck Coote during the build-up, prompting the referee to blow his whistle and disallow the goal.
Leicester’s frustration was compounded just minutes later when Aston Villa doubled their lead. The match had already seen Amadou Onana give Villa a first-half advantage, and Jhon Duran’s goal effectively put the game beyond Leicester’s reach.
Dean, who now features regularly on Soccer Saturday after a long career in the Premier League, felt compelled to respond to criticism from panelist and former Premier League striker Clinton Morrison.
Morrison had been critical of Coote’s positioning, suggesting that the referee should have done more to avoid interfering with the play.
“Get out the way, because you know where the ball’s going,” Morrison argued.
“As a referee, just get out the way—this is why referees don’t play football, because Winks made that reverse pass and he’s looking and he can’t see it. It’s a bad decision from Coote.
“I like him as a referee, it’s the letter of the law and he made the right decision, but tell that to the Leicester fans… because they aren’t happy. I don’t think it’s the right rule, but we move on.”
Dean, however, was quick to offer a different perspective.
“It’s unlucky, but players should not pass the ball to the referee, should they? There’s enough space,” he countered, before pointing out that the goal would not have stood regardless, as Coote had already blown his whistle before Vardy found the back of the net.
The Leicester match wasn’t the only Premier League fixture that day marred by refereeing controversy. In the earlier game, Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice received a second yellow card for kicking the ball away, a decision that drew criticism given that Brighton’s Joao Pedro had committed a similar offence earlier without being punished.
“I thought it was a bit harsh for us,” Arsenal star Bukayo Saka commented. Arsenal were leading 1-0 at the time of Rice’s dismissal, but the match eventually ended in a draw after Joao Pedro scored an equaliser.
“We just want some consistency. Joao Pedro booted the ball halfway across the pitch in the first half and got nothing for it, and Dec got the slightest touch and was sent off,”
Saka continued. “It is what it is, I don’t want to put the whole game on the referee as we still had chances to win it. It has been a good start. Today is a disappointment but it is a long season.”