Mario Melchiot was critical of Pape Matar Sarr for giving away a ‘reckless’ penalty during Tottenham Hotspur’s 3-3 draw against Southampton on Saturday.
In the dying moments of the game, Sarr was trying to clear the ball from inside the penalty area, but the £15 million man (DM) ended up missing his kick and catching Arsenal loanee, Ainsley Maitland-Niles.
The Southampton defender went to ground and the on-field referee, who was right in front of the incident, didn’t hesitate when he pointed to the spot.
James Ward-Prowse stepped up for his team and fired his penalty past Fraser Forster to secure a very valuable point for Southampton in their quest to survive relegation.
Whilst Antonio Conte’s rant after the game was the main talking point, the awarding of that penalty was also huge.
Former Premier League midfielder Melchiot admitted that there was an element of softness to that Sarr foul, but the 20-year-old gave the referee a call to make, as he told MatchDay Extra on Premier League Productions (18/03/23 at 8:10 pm).
“For me, the reckless way that Sarr tries to kick the ball away,” said Melchiot. “The whole emotion of his body, it kind of gave the referee some help in making the decision.
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“If he (Maitland-Niles) was on my team, then I would be very happy with him (going to ground). But seeing this, then he touches him really lightly.”
TOTTENHAM CAN’T STOP CONCEDING
There will be huge debate as to whether that penalty should have been awarded, but it only meant something because Spurs allowed their opponents back into the game.
At 3-1, the Champions League-chasing side, with less than 20 minutes left, should see the game out.
Instead, Spurs allowed former Arsenal man Theo Walcott to pull a goal back and that opened a wall of pressure for the team, they couldn’t cope, they conceded and then dropped points. No wonder Conte lost it after the match.
In other news, ‘He works really hard’: Tavernier wowed by £1.5m Rangers ace who’s a ‘credit to himself’
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