Newcastle United

Exclusive: Mark Halsey says Luka Milivojevic should’ve been sent off for Callum Wilson tackle

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Image for Exclusive: Mark Halsey says Luka Milivojevic should’ve been sent off for Callum Wilson tackle

Former Premier League referee Mark Halsey says that he thinks Newcastle were unlucky not to be playing against ten men against Crystal Palace.

Eagles midfielder Luka Milivojevic was cautioned with just under twenty minutes to go for a tackle on Newcastle United forward Callum Wilson, but replays showed that the tackle was probably a little bit high on Wilson’s leg and it could possibly have been a red card instead.

Speaking exclusively to This Is Futbol, Halsey spoke of his surprise at the decision and felt at the very least, referee Darren England should have been given the opportunity to look at it again through VAR.

He said: “I think he was rather fortunate because it was high – I think that’s the difference. I think if he’s low on the ankle, I mean, there’s a little bit of leeway in those situations, but he was so high – I mean, he left the ground, he was out of control, and he endangered the player’s safety.

“So I was surprised. Okay, in real-time, you can understand perhaps why he’s cautioned him, but I was surprised that VAR didn’t recommend a review because I think he can find himself very, very lucky that he wasn’t sent off.”

Should Callum Wilson be named the club's player of the year?

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Newcastle United can probably consider themselves very hard done by in this situation. On another day, that decision might be sent to be checked by VAR and they’d have gone into the last 20 minutes or so against ten men.

And considering how dominant they were throughout the game – with more possession, shots and shots on target – if Palace had to face that onslaught with fewer players on the pitch, Newcastle might have been able to get something out of the game.

Given the run they’ve been on recently, they need all the luck and help they can get, and it looks like they just didn’t have any on Tuesday night.

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Freelance sports journalist & broadcaster.