Declan Rice red card slammed by ex-referees' chief who asks eight key questions of decision

Declan Rice’s controversial sending off against Brighton has been slammed by ex-PGMOL chief Keith Hackett despite the issue now being “closed”.

The England star was sent off for two bookable offences against the Seagulls on Saturday. He picked up his first booking for a crunching challenge on Joel Veltman.

The pair were then at it again later in the game. As the Dutchman attempted to take a free-kick, Rice lightly nudged the ball away, with Veltman then kicking his opponent.

Arsenal fans were left stunned as referee Chris Kavanagh brandished a second yellow for Rice and a resultant red. Ex-PGMOL chief Keith Hackett has now given his view on the incident and claims that Kavanagh was too rushed in his decision making, while he also pointed to the face that Joao Pedro escaped a booking for a similar incident earlier in the game.

Writing on LinkedIn, he said: “Well did he apply the law correctly and in the spirit of the game? Did the referee enforce and allow the player time to be the appropriate 10 yards from the ball at the taking of the restart? Was the ball static at the time Rice made contact?

“Did his actions display visual or verbal dissent? Did he actually delay the restart by his actions? Was the referee proactive in preventing the incident? Why no action on the opponent of Rice who clearly kicked out, using the missing ball as an excuse?

“Why earlier in the game when a player booted the ball away from the scene of a required restart was no action taken? Rice cannot appeal two yellow cards so the matter is closed.”

Hackett’s assessment is unlikely to satisfy Arsenal, who will be without Rice’s services for their first game back after the international break. The Gunners take on North London rivals Tottenham later this month.

Declan Rice

Declan Rice was baffled at the decision to 

Did Declan Rice deserve a red card vs Brighton? Share your thoughts in the comments below

Mikel Arteta expressed his anger at the sending-off after Saturday’s stalemate. He said: "I was amazed. Amazed, amazed, amazed because of how inconsistent decisions can be. In the first half, there are two incidents and nothing happens.

"Then, in a non-critical area, the ball hits Declan [on the back of his leg], he turns around, he doesn't see the player coming and he touches the ball.

"By law, he can make that call, but then by law he needs to make the next call, which is a red card so we play 10vs10. This is what amazed me. At this level it's amazing."