Three decisions Georgi Kabakov got wrong in Aston Villa’s win vs Young Boys
Aston Villa prevailed 2-1 victors over Young Boys in the Europa League on 27 November.
Prior to the match, eyebrows continued to be raised with the exclusion of Harvey Elliott from the Aston Villa starting XI once again.
Having not seen much game time since the move to Villa Park, Elliott could make a shock loan move to the MLS in January, if Arne Slot opts to recall him and send him back out on loan for the remainder of the season.
However, with Unai Emery turning his attention to the Europa League, Football Insider reviews the decisions referee Georgi Kabakov got wrong.
Morgan Rogers too fast for Young Boys as defender lucky to escape early yellow card
Clearly full of confidence after his brace against Leeds on 23 November, Morgan Rogers was prancing around the midfield as he consistently confused the Swiss defence.
In the 12th minute, the Englishman picked up the ball in the middle of the park and looked to quickly turn away from his defender to run at the Young Boys backline.
However, the number 27 was caught by Loris Benito in a late and calculated challenge to knock him off his stride.
Kabakov clearly felt it was too early in the match for a yellow card, yet the manner of the foul suggests the number 23 was lucky to escape an early booking.
Donyell Malen targeted after Young Boys fans throw objects at Aston Villa players
Donyell Malen put the Villains into the lead in the 27th minute with a delightful header to bring joy to Villa Park.
Yet, as he wheeled away in celebration towards the travelling Young Boys fans, the Dutchman was on the receiving end of objects being thrown at him from the stands.
It wasn’t the first time this happened in the match, with Youri Tielemans also bearing the brunt when he took a corner before the goal.
Images showed Malen with a minor cut on the top of his head as well as Rogers and the Belgian being hit in the ensuing flurry of mixed objects.
Kabakov perhaps should’ve taken a moment to halt the game to ensure the players’ safety before resuming proceedings.
It was something which got worse at the end of the first half, after Malen’s second goal infuriated the Young Boys’ supporters, leading to a lengthy break in play due to off-pitch scuffles in the crowd.
Tanguy Zoukrou avoids yellow card with Ollie Watkins causing problems
In the 74th minute, moments after Young Boys had a goal disallowed for a narrow offside, Emery’s quadruple change were looking to have an impact on the game.
Ollie Watkins looked to turn Tanguy Zoukrou on the halfway line to use his pace to run at goal.
Yet, the Frenchman stopped the Englishman in his tracks, blocking a potential clear run on goal had he got past and, arguably, worthy of a yellow card.