Manchester City’s failure to win in the match against Southampton was accompanied by three controversial decisions by referee Jon Moss. Here are 3 controversies when Man City were held to a draw by Southampton, Saturday (18/9).
This match against Southampton is Raheem Sterling’s 200th appearance for Manchester City in the Premier League. He became the second English player to reach the milestone after Joe Hart (266 appearances). In total, Sterling has played 295 matches in the Premier League. His first 95 appearances in the competition he made for Liverpool between the 2011/12 and 2014/15 seasons.
Man City failed to win for the second time in five Premier League games. Before being held to a goalless draw with Southampton, Man City lost 0-1 to Tottenham Hotspur in the first week.
The Citizens now have to settle for second place in the Premier League standings with 10 points. The position of The Citizens is prone to being overtaken by Manchester United and Chelsea, who will only play on Sunday (19/2).
Man City’s failure to beat Southampton at the Etihad Stadium was also colored by the controversy over the decision of referee Moss.
The referee, who has been in charge of Premier League matches since 2010, made a decision that was detrimental to Man City and Southampton.
Moss’s decision, which was based on the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) received attention from various parties. Two former England players who are now observers, Gary Lineker and Michael Owen, think VAR has made a big difference in the Man City vs Southampton match.
Here are 3 controversies when Man City couldn’t beat Southampton:
1. Moss has given a red card to Man City defender, Kyle Walker, for violating the spearhead of Southampton, Adam Armstrong, in the 61st minute.
However, Moss annulled the decision after seeing a video on the sidelines. Even Moss did not reduce the red card to a yellow card, but did not give a card at all for the England right-back.
2. Moss also previously pointed to the white dot along with issuing a card for Walker. But after seeing the incident repeatedly through the VAR service, the referee who also works as a teacher canceled the penalty for Southampton.
3. Man City who appear under the best performance find it difficult to create opportunities. In the final minute, Raheem Sterling could actually break into Southampton’s goal. However, Moss confirmed the score remained unchanged because the former Liverpool player was declared to be in an offside position.
Moss’s decision to annulled Sterling’s goal was also made after viewing replays.
