Myles Lewis-Skelly’s red card in the 1-0 win at Wolves on Saturday has been rescinded on appeal.
The Arsenal defender was dismissed in the first half after bringing down Matt Doherty as the former Tottenham man dribbled out of his own area.
Referee Michael Oliver deemed the challenge to be serious foul play with VAR Darren England opting not to intervene and send the on-field official to the monitor for a second look.
Regulation and Discipline update on @Arsenal: pic.twitter.com/xHzKsrGDKt
— FA Spokesperson (@FAspokesperson) January 28, 2025
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta said afterwards he was “fuming” although his mood would have been even darker had the visitors not snatched a deserved victory thanks to Riccardo Calafiori’s goal against a Wolves side also down to 10 men at that point following Joao Gomes’ dismissal.
Arteta was confident the red card would be overturned and confirmation came this afternoon from the Football Association.
It means Lewis-Skelly’s three-game suspension no longer applies and he is able to play in the game with Manchester City at the weekend.
It has been reported today that Oliver was due to officiate that game at the Emirates but has been taken off the fixture and instead assigned to Ipswich versus Southampton.
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Shearer blasts Oliver decision
The Newcastle official has come in for heavy criticism for his performance at Molineux with BBC pundit Alan Shearer labelling the decision “one of the worst I have seen in a long time”.
A closer look at Myles Lewis-Skelly’s straight red card against Wolves 🟥 pic.twitter.com/tDRLpLRESQ
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 26, 2025
The former England captain said: “As a referee you can get it wrong on the pitch, you might see something which is incorrect.
“How on earth Darren England, the VAR, thinks that the referee has got that right and there is no need to send him to the screen.
“One of the worst decisions that I’ve seen in a long time.
I just cannot see and work out what VAR is thinking going along with Michael Oliver’s decision.
“No wonder it gets criticised by so many people.”
Online abuse abhorrent – PGMOL
Oliver was also subjected to abuse and threats on social media, leading refereeing body PGMOL to issue a statement.
PGMOL Statement ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/Go2gVNSzfk
— PGMOL (@FA_PGMOL) January 26, 2025
It read: “We are appalled by the threats and abuse directed at Michael Oliver following the Wolverhampton Wanderers v Arsenal fixture. No official should be subject to any form of abuse, let alone the abhorrent attacks aimed at Michael and his family over the past 24 hours.
“The police are aware, and a number of investigations have commenced. We are supporting Michael, and all those affected, and are determined to tackle this unacceptable behaviour. Sadly, this is not the first time a match official has been forced to deal with threats in recent times.”
Despite the weekend furore, Oliver is still regarded as one of the Premier League’s top officials and he will take charge of the plum Champions League tie between Barcelona and Atalanta tomorrow night.
England will be the assistant VAR to Jarred Gillett for the same fixture.
Barca have already advanced to the round of 16 stage automatically but Atalanta’s fate is yet to be determined.
