Howard Webb urges VAR officials to intervene more often on soft penalties

• Webb wants challenges with minimal contact to be reviewed
• PGMOL referees’ chief issues new advice after controversies

Video assistant referees in England have been urged to speak out on “soft” penalties, by encouraging on-pitch officials to review their decision even if an error is not “clear and obvious”. The new advice from the referees’ chief, Howard Webb, follows a succession of controversial penalty incidents in the Premier League and Europe.

It is understood that VAR officials were told on Wednesday by Webb, the chief refereeing officer of Professional Game Match Officials Limited, they should feel able to draw a referee’s attention to penalty decisions made after challenges that involve only minimal contact. Recent examples of such incidents involve penalties awarded against Wolves in two matches, against Newcastle and Sheffield United, with the former resulting in the demotion of the referee Anthony Taylor to the Championship for a game week.

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