Referee Rob Jones has been at the centre of controversy after failing to send off Brian Brobbey during Tottenham's 1-0 loss to Sunderland, and a Premier League panel has now confirmed that he has been responsible for five key match incidents this season.
Jones under scrutiny
Jones officiated the Premier League clash between Sunderland and Tottenham on April 12, where Brobbey made a late challenge on Spurs captain Cristian Romero. In the 63rd minute, Brobbey pushed Romero in the back, causing him to collide with goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky. Romero suffered a knee injury that will sideline him for the remainder of the season.
Although Jones awarded a foul against Brobbey, the Dutch striker, who was already on a yellow card, avoided a second booking. VAR cannot intervene on potential second yellow cards.
Panel decision
The Premier League's Key Match Incidents (KMI) panel voted 3-2 that Jones made an error, with the majority concluding that Brobbey's two-handed push was an unnecessarily reckless action. Of the 12 KMI errors related to second yellow cards not being shown this season, Jones has been responsible for five. The other four incidents involved Newcastle's Malick Thiaw, Manchester City's Ruben Dias and Rodri, and Chelsea's Cole Palmer.
Over the past two seasons, Jones has the joint-most mistakes on second bookings, accounting for 10 of the 42 errors. He also overturned a Tottenham penalty earlier in the game.
Manager reaction
Tottenham manager Roberto De Zerbi responded to the news during a press conference on Friday, saying: "Can we play that game again or not? I think not. It was clear but no problem. We have to move on."
Tottenham face already-relegated Wolves on Saturday in a crucial match, as they remain in the relegation zone, two points behind West Ham. De Zerbi acknowledged the challenge: "It's a tough game because they have nothing to lose. It's an important game for us, for sure, but we have to be able to play with not too much pressure."
