Premier League refs lay down the law

WWE-style grappling at corner kicks, manhandling of match officials, verbal abuse: Sometimes the beautiful game can take on an ugly side.

This season, at least in these early weeks, English Premier League referees are taking a stand.

The start of the new English football season has been marked with no-nonsense — some might say over-zealous — officiating that has got fearful defenders re-evaluating their trade and penalty-taking strikers licking their lips at the opportunities coming their way.

One referee awarded two penalties in the same game for pushing and holding in the penalty area at a corner kick. Another has yellowcarded a player for sarcastically applauding a decision. Diego Costa, Chelsea’s typically irate striker, has already been booked for aggressively approaching a referee. After two rounds of fixtures, seven penalties have been awarded already, compared to three at the same stage last season.

It’s not uncommon for referees to put down markers early in the season or at the start of a major international tournament. Before too long, they have eased off.

It remains to be seen if that will be the case this season.

“It’s fine as long as it’s consistent right from now to the end of the season,” Stoke manager Mark Hughes said. “Usually, it isn’t.”

Stoke has been one of the teams to suffer from the vigorous officiating. The team fell behind to Manchester City on Saturday when defender Ryan Shawcross was adjudged to have pulled back an opponent at a corner and conceded a penalty, converted by Sergio Aguero. In the second half, City conceded a penalty after Raheem Sterling impeded Shawcross at a corner when he wasn’t even looking at the ball.

After the game, both managers accepted there was a clear move by referees to act on grappling and shirt-pulling. And their players are starting to take note.

“The penalty was given for using my hands,” said Shawcross, a physical and uncompromising centre back. “It’s something I’m going to have to look at and hopefully adapt in the right way, so I don’t give any more penalties away.”

Heading into the new season, the Premier League was most concerned with the damage that abuse of match officials was doing to its image.

Premier League managers held off-season briefings with referees and soccer authorities over the desired improvements in player behaviour. “They explained everything again,” Middlesbrough manager Aitor Karanka said. “We have to be careful, they are the rules.”

Some players don’t appear to be getting the message, though.

Costa had 23 yellow cards and one red card — for angrily approaching a referee — across his first two seasons at Chelsea. He has been booked in both his opening league games this year, too, the first for dissent toward a referee.

Asked if he knew about the new dissent law, Costa told ESPN: “I am aware of it now.”