Wembley curtain raiser sets the perfect tone for the season
When I refereed the Charity Shield match between Arsenal and Manchester United in 1998 the instructions to me in the car going to Wembley were very specific: this game sets the standard for the season, everybody will be watching and it’s your responsibility to let them know what to expect for the season ahead.
First blood: United have sealed the first piece of silverware this season
From what we have seen of Phil Dowd’s performance, particularly in the first half of an intriguing match between Manchester United and Manchester City, there will be few changes for this season.
City’s Micah Richards could well have been sent off for his lunging studs-led challenge on Ashley Young but Dowd chose the yellow card.
Those who like refereeing to be low profile will be very happy and the FA can argue that a match in which there were only 23 fouls and seven cautions was refereed fairly.
And just as Manchester United winning in stoppage time seems to be par for the course, yet again lenient refereeing would seem to be the way forward this season.
On a bright note, there were few situations where players confronted the referee.
I understand that there has been quite a debate in refereeing circles as to how to deal with abuse this season, but as there was none in this game we will have to wait until the Premier League commences this weekend to see what the referees have decided.
Head to head: Nemanja Vidic and Mario Balotelli square up at Wembley
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