Dermot Gallagher drops verdict on Yerry Mina incident in Everton v Bournemouth live on Sky Sports, Stephen Warnock reacts
Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher believes that VAR made the correct decision not to rule against Everton defender Yerry Mina for a supposed bite on Dominic Solanke in the win at Goodison Park.
The Toffees claimed a dramatic 1-0 victory over Bournemouth on Sunday (28 May) to secure their Premier League status for next season, but there could have been a disaster for Sean Dyche’s side when the VAR investigated the incident involving the Colombian centre-back.
The referee opted not to rule that any foul play had occurred, and after a lengthy VAR check, the decision was upheld.
Speaking live on Sky Sports News’ Ref Watch (29 May), Gallagher felt like the right course of action was taken on the flashpoint during the crunch clash, but Sky Sports pundit Stephen Warnock was critical of Mina’s lack of discipline.
“There is no evidence anywhere that he [Mina] has bitten him,” Gallagher said.
“Solanke reacts to it, the referee is very close and has a good view, but the VAR studied it, studied it and studied and they said no evidence, and I would support that.”
Warnock replied: “Well, the one thing we always say is, never give the referee anything to look at and the opportunity to make a decision.
“Why Yerry Mina does that, I’m not sure. I think he was very caught up in the occasion yesterday. You can see he plays with his heart on his sleeve, he gets a little bit too overzealous, I mean, you saw the one with Haaland a couple of weeks ago.
“Getting involved with people, pinching people pulling at them, scratching them, trying to frustrate them, but just don’t give them [the VAR] the opportunity, especially with the size of that game yesterday.”
Caught up in the moment
Mina has always been a temperamental character and it seems like yesterday he got caught up in the moment.
The centre-back can be an exceptional defender on his day, as proven by his brilliant displays against both Brighton and Wolves recently, but he remains a figure who a manager can never fully trust.
This incident against the Cherries would have been extremely close to being ruled a red card for foul play, but luckily it seemed like he didn’t actually make any contact with Solanke.
After several injury-ravaged and topsy-turvy seasons in an Everton shirt, it feels like this match was a farewell ahead of his contract expiring at the end of the season.
Mina always plays as close to the line as possible, and thankfully he didn’t stray beyond it in a match of such magnitude.
One moment of madness could well have been the difference between Everton playing Premier League football and dropping into the doldrums of the Championship.