Ex-referee Dermot Gallagher gives honest verdict on Chelsea vs Burnley penalty controversy

Former referee Dermot Gallagher says foul on Mykhaylo Mudryk wasn’t a penalty for Chelsea

Chelsea and their 2-2 draw with Burnley at Stamford Bridge was more about penalty controversy than the game. When the Blues received a penalty following a foul on Mykhaylo Mudryk that saw the visitors go down to 10-man after Lorenz Assignon was shown a red card, this didn’t go down well with the visitors as they protested against the referee to overturn his decision.

Things got worse for the visitors when Vincent Kompany was also sent off for his remonstrations on the touchline. However, despite a poor start to the match, Burnley remained in the game and managed to salvage a point.

Lorenz was already booked in the game, and the referee, Darren England, didn’t hesitate to show the second card, giving the player marching orders. Despite the Clarets going down one man, they continued with their onslaught and pushed for an equaliser when Cole Palmer gave the Blues the lead. Chelsea as usual with their vulnerable defence conceded a late goal despite boosting numerical advantage.

The penalty was the main highlight of the game, which evoked controversy, and former referee Dermot Gallagher, who spoke on the incident, gave his verdict on the Darren call and told on Monday’s episode of Sky Sports via Burnley Express:

“Interesting… I just cannot see how it’s a penalty. I talk about referees and how tough it is, but I don’t know what’s made him think that’s a penalty. It’s not a penalty, 100 percent.’’

Should had it been a penalty?

It’s clear that referee calls during this sort of game have become worse, and this season has seen a lot of these calls go wrong. We have VARs who are there to assist on-field officials when their decision ignites controversy on the field like this, but it didn’t appear like there was any communication between the VAR and the on-field official, so you have to draw your own conclusions and referee Darren’s decision didn’t go well with the players.

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Following the contact, Mudryk appeared to be in a soft contact, but this is football, so the attacker made sure he made the best possible use of it. This may work in your favour or against you at times. Still, it would have been preferable if we had been able to eke out a victory. But our poor defence continues to remain toothless in crucial situations.