The Football Association have confirmed assistant referee Constantine Hatzidakis will face no further action following the clash with Liverpool ’s Andy Robertson.
Hatzidakis had been suspended by the refereeing body PGMOL pending an investigation after the incident with the defender during the dramatic 2-2 draw with Arsenal. The official had been accused of elbowing Robertson, who approached him after the half-time whistle.
However, following a thorough investigation which included detailed statements from both parties, Hatzidakis is free to return to top-flight matches.
An FA statement reads: “We have thoroughly reviewed all of the evidence in relation to the recent incident at Anfield involving the Liverpool defender Andrew Robertson and match official Constantine Hatzidakis, and we will be taking no further action.
“Our comprehensive process involved reviewing detailed statements from Liverpool and the PGMOL, as well as multiple angles of video footage, in relation to both the incident and its surrounding circumstances.”
The 38-year-old has kept his counsel since the incident, telling reporters outside his home that he would wait until the conclusion of an investigation before speaking out. He has now offered his side of the story claiming that he simply pulled his arm away from Robertson - and has since offered an apology which has been accepted.
Hatzidakis added: “I fully assisted The FA with their investigation and have discussed the matter directly with Andy Robertson during an open and positive conversation. It was certainly not my intention to make any contact with Andy as I pulled my arm away from him and for that I have apologised. I look forward to returning to officiating matches.”
There had been calls for Hatzidakis to face a lengthy ban, similar to the one imposed on Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic. He was suspended for eight matches for pushing referee Chris Kavanagh last month.
Not everyone agreed with that sentiment however, with Manchester United legend Roy Keane placing all the blame at Robertson's feet. He told Sky Sports last weekend: "Robertson, do you know what, does he grab the linesman first? I'm not sure, but he's complaining. He should be more worried about his defending.
"Do you know what it is, that Robertson? I've watched him a number of times. He's a big baby. That's what he is. Just get on with the game and concentrate on your defending. He does grab the linesman first."
Meanwhile, a charity which supports for referees Ref Support UK told Mirror Football that rule changes need to be implemented to protect officials, including significantly harsher punishments - including points deductions for teams involved in serious dissent.
“We’ve called for a two-metre rule,” the charity’s chief executive, Martin Cassidy explained. “We had this coming out of Covid. It would have been very easy to say: ‘If you come within two metres of a match official, uninvited, in an aggressive manner, you get a yellow card or get sent off.’ There are no boundaries at the moment.”
He added: “Money punishment doesn’t work at any level of football. They’ve been taking money as punishment for ages and I don’t think it’s good that anyone makes money out of abuse of referees.
“The individual that gets abused gets no benevolence whatsoever – it’s the wrong approach. We need to start deducting points. So if someone is found guilty of abusing a referee, that person’s team loses points. The deterrent will be there.”
