Liverpool midfielder Alexis Mac Allister has been accused of ‘cheating’ by former PGMOL chief executive Keith Hackett after an incident in the Reds’ 4-2 defeat to Aston Villa on Friday night.
After Ezri Konsa grabbed the 27-year-old’s shirt and held it up to his face just prior to a corner kick, the Argentine midfielder dramatically threw himself to the ground, with a visibly frustrated Arne Slot gesturing at him to get back to his feet.
Jamie Carragher rightly described the antics as ‘embarrassing‘, and a prominent former top-flight official has duly called for stricter sanctions against acts of ‘blatant cheating’.
Speaking about the incident between Mac Allister and Konsa to Football Insider, Hackett said: “This is the cynical side of football. Why did the player have that altercation? Why did they both have their hands in each other’s faces?
“They’ve opened themselves up to being sent off. It’s because they know they can get away with it, thanks to poor officiating. When you get someone who goes down and stays down, the referee isn’t a medic, so he has to stop the game.
“This is the type of incident that should be re-refereed, not necessarily to undermine officials, but because it’s an act of simulation, which – in effect – is cheating. The game has a long way to go to resolve the issue of blatant cheating.”
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We hope that Slot had a strong word with Mac Allister in private after that flashpoint on Friday night, because the Liverpool midfielder’s play-acting was totally unacceptable, and nor did it help his team as Villa extended their lead to 3-1 from the subsequent corner kick.
If we saw an opposition player carrying on like that against the Reds, we’d be absolutely disgusted, so it’s only right that we call it out when it happens the other way around. What the Argentine did in that moment was shameful.
The 27-year-old’s first-half stats at Villa Park had painted a positive picture in what’s been a difficult season for him, but that was swiftly forgotten after his regrettable actions from the tussle with Konsa.
If such gamesmanship persists in the Premier League, the authorities could ultimately take a firmer stance on it and mandate referees to show red cards for petulant acts of simulation, or retrospective bans could be administered.
If Mac Allister plays in Liverpool’s season-ending clash against Brentford next Sunday, hopefully we’ll see a performance akin to the levels he consistently reached last term, rather than indulging in the unwelcome actions we witnessed on Friday night.
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No such outrage when doku kicked macalister in the chest ..a decision that cost Liverpool the title
Only when its LFC its cheating, referees in England are the worst
It was embarrassing but I’ve seen worse and nobody’s commented on it
I would be more concerned with the standard of refereeing in yesterday’s game at old Trafford. A blatant handball which the referee overturned var.
Referee Michael sailsbury should never referee another game in the premier league. It’s no good Michael webb chief refereeing officer giving forest an Apology. Not good enough.
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