- Referee Chris Kavanagh has been omitted from this weekend's Premier League appointments following controversial decisions during last Saturday's FA Cup match between Aston Villa and Newcastle.
- Kavanagh and his assistants faced significant criticism for errors, including failing to identify Tammy Abraham as offside for Villa's opening goal and not punishing a shin-high challenge by Lucas Digne.
- Another contentious decision involved awarding a free-kick for a handball by Digne, despite the incident clearly occurring inside the penalty area, with no VAR available for that round of the FA Cup.
- While assistant Gary Beswick has been named for another match, Kavanagh and Nick Greenhalgh do not feature in any appointments, with selections based on post-match performance assessments.
- Wayne Rooney suggested the errors indicated an over-reliance on VAR by officials, though former referee Graham Scott disagreed, stating officials do not hide behind the technology.
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