1 day Ago By Daniel Orme
Alan Shearer has lambasted referee Slavko Vincic for his officiating of Arsenal 's Champions League clash with PSG, which made the match "very difficult" for both sides. Arsenal hosted the French giants at the Emirates on Tuesday evening for the first leg of their semi-final bout. It kicked off with PSG's Ousmane Dembele giving them an early lead, but progressing tensions marred by continuous foul calls disrupted the flow of the game.
Both Leandro Trossard and Bukayo Saka picked up bookings for Arsenal in incidents that were deemed debatable, adding to the general irritation of players and fans alike. Saka's booking, in particular, sparked a chorus of booing towards Vincic after he seemed to successfully get past Nuno Mendes before being called back. Offering his thoughts during the Amazon Prime Video broadcast, co-commentator Shearer did not hold back and said: "The ref has made it very difficult for himself when he booked Trossard early on.
I was worried he was going to be one of those and he is. "The booing from the Arsenal supporters makes sense because Saka had every right to chase that ball down. I didn't think that was a foul.
"This is a tough game already for the referee. He's given a very early yellow card and spoken to a few players. It's not an easy one for him.
" Shearer added later on: "I wasn't impressed with his performance. I thought he wanted to be the star of the show instead of letting the game flow." The official also drew confusion at the Emirates when Joao Neves' impressive block stopped Mikel Merino mid-way through the first half.
Fans erupted, thinking Arsenal deserved a penalty and Vincic seemed to indicate as much. Shearer, along with ex-Premier League ref Mark Clattenburg, suggested that Vincic's signals had 'confused' onlookers. Another penalty appeal came from PSG, as Khvicha Kvaratskhelia fell due to Jurrien Timber, but no call was made and VAR remained silent.
Controversy intensified shortly into the second half as Arsenal believed they'd levelled the score with Mikel Merino's header off Declan Rice's free-kick - only for VAR to halt their joy abruptly..
