The Everton manager Asserts PGMO Unwilling to Explain Debatable Calls
David Moyes has claimed that the Professional Game Match Officials is hesitant to communicate with managers because so many refereeing decisions this season have been hard to justify. The Everton manager said he was left speechless when Fulham were awarded what proved to be a match-winning penalty against Nottingham Forest on Monday.
Lack of Uniformity in Penalty Calls Highlighted
Everton were denied a penalty on Saturday for a comparable incident during their home defeat by Arsenal. Moyes did not criticise the decision at the time but, in light of Fulham’s penalty, feels the inconsistency of referees can not be ignored.
“I was half choking last night when I saw the decision given and ours wasn’t,” Moyes commented. “There is a sense that certain clubs get those decisions and other clubs don’t. We seem to be on the latter side of that.”
Previous Cases and Growing Frustration
The coach also pointed to an previous case in the season at Brentford involving Virgil van Dijk which was very comparable. “It was later it was given. It is frustrating it wasn’t given on the night and we are reviewing other instances which have been overlooked,” he added.
Lack of Dialogue with Officiating Authorities
When asked whether he intended to raise the issue with the officiating body, Moyes expressed further frustration. “I don’t really know,” he said. “They don’t make it easy whatever you want. They are unwilling to have a conversation about it really. They might engage, but they don’t want to because they’re finding it probably very difficult to explain things.”
This stance from the PGMO highlights a wider issue of transparency and accountability in the sport’s refereeing, according to the long-serving coach.
