Ex-Premier League referee sends warning to Chelsea over Nicolas Jackson scuffle

Dermot Gallagher, an ex-Premier League referee, has warned Chelsea that the FA may interfere when a fresh camera perspective of the altercation involving Nicolas Jackson surfaced during the club’s 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest.

Tensions were high throughout Sunday’s game at Stamford Bridge, when Noni Madueke canceled out Chris Wood’s opening to earn a draw for the Blues.

Towards the conclusion of the game, Marc Cucurella was pushed in the back by Neco Williams, sending the Spanish full-back into Enzo Maresca on the sideline.

The incident caused a heated exchange between both sets of players before referee Chris Kavanagh allowed play to resume, with Chelsea attacker Jackson escaping punishment following a VAR review.

However, photographs have emerged that appear to show Jackson, who had already been replaced, hitting Forest’s Morato in the face.

Wesley Fofana and Cucurella both collected cards in the encounter, putting them out of Chelsea’s post-international break trip to Liverpool due to suspension.

Jackson might still play at Anfield as things stand, but former official Gallagher feels that would alter if the scuffle is reviewed again by the FA.

When asked about Kavanagh’s choice to keep his distance during the incident, Gallagher told Sky Sports’ Ref Watch, ‘I believe if you get in the thick of this, you’ve got two problems.

‘First, you run the chance of getting struck yourself. If a player attacks you, that player has a serious problem, therefore the referee does not want to place himself in that situation because he may strike him accidently, but that will not exonerate him.

‘Secondly, you have a more panoramic perspective, which allows you to observe who has fled from a distance. Who came in as an attacker and who came in as a peacemaker?

‘So there’s a lot of value in standing back. When you see that circumstance, you do what you can, your colleagues do what they can, the VAR does what they can, and if there is anything left over, the FA will step in.According to Gallagher, the video assistant referee did not have access to the best camera view of Jackson’s slap, hence the striker may face retrospective punishment.

I believe this is consistent with what I just mentioned. Once your colleagues have swept up for you, if there is anything else, the FA may pick it up at a later point,” he said.

‘This camera viewpoint was unavailable yesterday. I know because I was watching the situation and seeing what VAR was looking at, and they definitely didn’t have that perspective.

‘So the angle may be that it was not reviewed by VAR because they were unable to see it, and this is a new angle. It is up to the FA to determine what to do.