Ex-Fifa referee lambasts officials after Nigel Pearson controversy at Bristol City
Bristol City boss Nigel Pearson is right about the “stagnation” of officiating standards and should request a sit-down meeting with the PGMOL.
That is according to former Premier League referee Keith Hackett, who was speaking exclusively to Football Insider about the veteran manager’s concerns.
As quoted by Bristol Live (16 August), Bristol City boss Pearson revealed he has considered walking away from football because the standard of refereeing is at an “all-time low”.
He revealed that the PGMOL have sent letters to the Robins to admit mistakes in their recent Championship fixtures.
The former Leicester boss branded the second-tier referees as “consistently poor” and insisted it is a “worry for the game”.
Hackett claimed the PGMOL “can’t ignore” the experienced manager’s statement.
He told Football Insider‘s Dylan Childs: “He’ll get into trouble.
“It’ll be a sad day if a man of his experience walks away from the game. He doesn’t issue threats of that nature without actually meaning it.
“You can’t ignore his statement. I have no doubt that the FA have already written to him.
“My advice to Nigel Pearson would be to get a member of his technical staff to compile a DVD of all the incidents he is concerned about and ask the boss of the PGMOL to visit him.
“They need to sit down and have a meeting. I’ve done it in the past – and I’ve demonstrated that I care about the standard of officiating.
“The PGMOL have allowed some degree of stagnation in recent years, which has led to some referees not being up to standard.”
In other news, Football Insider updates with winger undergoing Sunderland medical today after deal agreed.