The Wolves vs. Burnley match is evidence that referees need to stop timewasting.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s team came away with an undeserved point but the matchup was hideously anti-football.
And it’s a gross recurrence that Premier League officials must stop immediately.
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How to stop Burnley and other teams from timewasting
Wolves didn’t deserve a draw against Burnley yesterday, but that doesn’t stop timewasting from being a plague on football.
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Sean Dyche’s team shouldn’t be condemned for trying to get the win, meaning it’s the referees who should be blamed.
Referees must give yellow cards to goalkeepers as soon as they keep taking an age to take a goal kick. This’ll immediately stop them from running down the clock and killing the atmosphere.
But, if they did continue to strangle the home crowd with their anti-football timewasting, then referees would need to be brave enough to immediately send them off without warning.
Timewasting and diving will only be stamped out of football when players are punished.
Kicking the ball away and constantly swapping between throwers should also get outfield players booked. When this happens more than once, referees must give the latest offender a yellow card.
The above stipulations should apply to the big, middle and small teams in the Premier League. It’s the only way to prevent timewasting so home crowds are no longer at the mercy of dinosaur tactics deployed by away teams whose fans applaud anti-football.
Away teams shouldn’t be discouraged from parking the bus or being pragmatic, but timewasting shouldn’t be tolerated. The referees never add on the right amount of time, nor do they do enough – if anything – to discourage the cheating.
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This must change for the good of the premier league, but it won’t as officials and everyone else are too bothered talking nonstop about VAR.