Former Premier League referee Mike Dean has revealed the incident he believes he “made a mistake” while on VAR duty.
Dean, 56, ended his time as a referee in the English top flight at the end of the 2021-22 campaign but remained on VAR duty at the start of the following season.
During his time in the VAR booth, Dean oversaw a controversial moment during Tottenham’s visit to Chelsea, which ended 2-2.
During the London derby, Spurs defender Cristian Romero was seen pulling Chelsea’s Marc Cucurella by the hair in a corner and managed to escape any form of punishment.
Instead, referee Anthony Taylor allowed play to continue as Tottenham took the initiative and took another corner from which Harry Kane scored to secure a point for his team.
Meanwhile, last weekend, Southampton’s Jack Stephens was sent off for an almost identical incident involving Cucurella and, discussing the dismissal, Dean admitted he should have sent off Romero two years ago.
Former Premier League referee Mike Dean revealed the incident where he ‘got it wrong’
In 2022, Dean, who was on VAR duty, did not intervene after Tottenham star Cristian Romero dragged Chelsea’s Marc Cucurella by the hair during their clash at Stamford Bridge.
Meanwhile, Jack Stephens pulled Marc Cucurella’s hair and was ejected on Wednesday
Speaking on Sky Sports, Dean said: “Unfortunately, I was involved in one of these incidents about three years ago,” Dean said. ‘I think someone pulled, I think Romero pulled Cucurella’s hair. I didn’t do it (fire him).
“But it is clear that he has done it and he must be expelled.” It is his second red card of the season. It has to be an expulsion, it can’t not be.
When pressed further by co-analyst Paul Merson, Dean said: ‘(Romero wasn’t sent off) because I was wrong. And he (Stephens) has been expelled.”
Southampton, who at the time were already 3-1 down after two errors by their goalkeeper Joe Lumley, were in a dangerous position after winning a corner.
And when referee Tony Harrington wasn’t looking, Stephens decided to pull Cucurella’s hair. The Spaniard subsequently fell to the ground and VAR advised Harrington to go to the screen.
After taking a quick look at a replay of the incident, Harrington did not hesitate to give Stephens his marching orders in another big coup for Russell Martin’s struggling side.
The Premier League match center added further clarity to the decision by publishing in X: ’38’ VAR OVERTURN.
Dean admitted Romero (left) should have been sacked for his actions against the full-back
Unlike Southampton’s clash with Chelsea, Dean did not advise the referee to check the monitor
‘The VAR recommended an on-field review for possible violent conduct by Jack Stephens. The referee then showed him a red card.
The red card was Stephens’ second sending off of the season, with the defender also sent off against Manchester United in September.
The rules of the game do not mention hair pulling by name, and it is up to the referee’s discretion whether pulling an opponent’s hair constitutes violent conduct, which is a punishable infraction.
During a match between Manchester United and Leicester in 2016, Robert Huth and Marouane Fellaini were charged with violent conduct by the Football Association, following an incident in which Fellaini hit the German defender with his elbow after Huth grabbed him by the hair.