In the wake of Manchester United’s draw with Newcastle at the weekend, fans raised concerns about the lack of minutes being played in recent games.
And with questions about the refereeing of Sunday’s clash at Old Trafford, the statistics seem to suggest that these concerns are fully justified.
The ball was ‘in play’ for 53.4% of the total match time (including stoppage time) – 20 games have seen a lower ratio than this in the 2022-23 Premier League.
Total match time was 98 minutes, 17 seconds; the ball was ‘in play’ for 52 minutes, 31 seconds of that.
— The Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) October 17, 2022
Given that the total length of the weekend’s 0-0 draw was 98 minutes and 17 seconds, it’s quite shocking to see that the ball was in play for only 52 minutes and 31 seconds of that time.
Although this is not a new phenomenon in football, it has returned to the spotlight due to poor decision-making.
Coupled with such inconsistent officiating in matches, specifically around added time, the issue has fans angered once again.
The Reds have been on the receiving end of this before, most notably against Manchester City recently, where 5 second-half goals and surprisingly multiple substitutions somehow only amounted to 2 minutes of added time.
Newcastle seem to have form, however, when it comes to using the time allotted in a way that is to their advantage.
A look at the statistics from last season shows that the North East club participated in no less than 4 games in which the ball was in play for 45 minutes or less.
In one game, away to Aston Villa in August 2021, the ball was in play for only 41 minutes out of 90, with excessive loss of time resulting in actual football being played for less than 50% of the duration of the game. match.
But it wasn’t just the question of time, or lack of it, that had Red Devils fans backing.
Referee Craig Pawson was guilty of an arbitration standard that must surely be investigated by the authorities.
Allowing such blatant time wasting by Newcastle, which contributed to the overall problem and should have been taken into consideration by the referees, sets a precedent that no one wants to see present in the modern game.
The introduction of VAR was supposed to help, but even with the technology to help, United’s Jadon Sancho and Cristiano Ronaldo were denied a penalty.
And with an obvious goal from Ronaldo yet to come, coupled with failure to acknowledge mistakes, surely something needs to be done to stop the rot, and fast.
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