View: De Zerbi to fume as PL official's record emerges after ruling on Tottenham decision v Sunderland

Roberto De Zerbi’s first game as Tottenham Hotspur manager did not go to plan, with Sunderland coming away with a 1-0 win.

A 61st-minute strike from Nordi Mukiele separated the two sides, but the Italian will have been left even more disappointed when Cristian Romero had to be hauled off.

Following a collision with goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky, where Brian Brobbey had pushed the defender over, the Dutchman was not awarded a yellow card for the incident.

It left Romero in quite some discomfort, and news since has kept him out for the season.

However, 12 days on from the incident in Tottenham’s loss, the Premier League’s KMI panel has made an official ruling.

What have the Premier League said about the Brian Brobbey incident?

Rob Jones’ decision to keep Brobbey on the pitch against Tottenham has come under scrutiny.

At the time, it was a contentious decision, with Dermot Gallagher defending it but with questions raised from outside voices

However, according to the Premier League’s KMI panel, Brobbey should have received a second yellow card for his foul on Romero.

In a vote which ended three-to-two, it was said that “there is a two-handed push which is an unnecessarily reckless action”.

However, while mistakes from referees on occasion are expected and can limit the blow, Tottenham will feel particularly hard done by based on Jones’ history.

Jones is seemingly a repeat offender when it comes to poor decisions involving second yellow cards. The referee has been involved in five of the 12 errors this season regarding second yellow cards not being shown.

Additionally, in the last two seasons, no referee has had more errors in regard to second bookings. In 2023-2024, he had two errors on his end. Meanwhile, in 2024-2025, he ended the campaign with three.

Alongside that, Tottenham’s 28 per cent win rate with Jones officiating in the middle means that the Lilywhites will hope to not see the official often in the future.

Tottenham must move swiftly on now

While fury will no doubt be a feeling in N17, Spurs cannot keep on looking back with relegation threatening the club.

Yes, this incident may have ultimately resulted in a loss, but with five Premier League matches left, there is a chance to climb out of the drop zone.

What matters now is that any anger over this incident, which left Romero out for the season, should be channelled into the performances on the pitch.

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