Arsenal defender Gabriel was the subject of a five-person review following the Chelsea clash, with the panel reaching a unanimous verdict on both the referee and VAR.
Gabriel escaped a red card following an incident involving Martinez just over four minutes into the game which saw the Arsenal defender attempt to kick the ball whilst on the ground, with his foot instead kicking the Chelsea goalkeeper in the head. The referee allowed play to continue, with a VAR review deciding there was no reason to intervene.
The incident was subsequently included among the major decisions reviewed by the Premier League’s KMI panel from Match Round Three released today. The report showing that here was no disagreement over how it had been handled by both the referee or VAR.
All five panel members judged the referee’s decision not to dismiss Gabriel as correct. The decision by VAR not to recommend an overturn was also supported by another unanimous 5-0 vote.
The panel explained that there were several players on the ground at the time, all competing for the loose ball, and did not believe Gabriel’s actions amounted to either violent conduct or serious foul play.
That assessment settles one of the bigger talking points to come out of Arsenal’s meeting with Chelsea.
Gabriel’s challenge attracted attention because of the nature of the contact and how early it came in the game, but the independent review found no refereeing error and no missed intervention from VAR.
The KMI panel is made up of five members, with one representative from the Premier League, one from PGMOL and three independent former players or managers. In this case, every member came to the same conclusion on both stages of the decision-making process.
Gabriel was not the only Arsenal player involved in an incident reviewed from the match.
Ezri Konsa’s goal was initially allowed before VAR intervened for offside. The panel unanimously found the original on-field decision to be incorrect, voting 0-5, while all five members supported the VAR intervention which ruled the goal out.
There was no such issue with Kai Havertz’s goal later in the first half. The assistant referee judged Havertz to be onside and that decision was unanimously supported, with the panel also backing VAR’s decision not to intervene.
The Gabriel incident remained one of the most heavily debated in the weeks following the match as it involved the possibility of Arsenal being reduced to 10 men so early in a match that was tightly contested.
The Premier League’s review, though, leaves little ambiguity over its position. Unlike some KMI decisions which produce a split vote over the threshold for a foul or intervention, all five members agreed Gabriel should have remained on the pitch and that VAR was right to leave the referee’s decision alone.
