For those of us who have longer memories and can think back to the France 1998 World Cup, and in particular the England versus Argentina match, we know exactly how much a silly moment of petulance can cost a player and a team. Although David Beckham was spotted kicking out, Alan Hutton was not, and yet the difference in punishment has been dramatic, with Hutton escaping any action whatsoever and Beckham sent off in disgrace. The Premier League betting offers suggest Spurs will do well this season, but their players will need to keep their discipline.
With referees increasingly coming under the spotlight, and their decisions now able to be questioned via 3D, HD and just plain old regular TV, the fact is that no action on the pitch can avoid being spotted by one of the many cameras filming the game each week. For this reason alone, it is inconceivable that the FA, and in particular the referee of the Tottenham versus Birmingham game, Kevin Friend, can have missed Hutton’s blatant retaliatory butt.
If Hutton is to escape this action without punishment, it would surely let down referees across the country, further damage the reputation of the FA, as well as send the message out to players both young and old that retaliatory violence on a football pitch is entirely acceptable. Anyone looking to bet on Premier League action would have been disappointed by the incident too.
Despite the FA attempting to create a culture of respect towards referees, the fact remains that the failures of referees to display consistently good performances is letting the Premier League down. However, if the FA do show that they are capable of reacting appropriately to video evidence and deal with Hutton by banning him for the next few games, the potentially damaging repercussions can hopefully be avoided.
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