Man City and Arsenal get empty gesture for Premier League showdown

The Professional Game Match Officials, or PGMOL as they are more commonly known, want everyone to know that they won't tolerate refereeing mistakes.

That is why John Brooks has been replaced as the VAR official for Manchester City's trip to Arsenal, replaced by David Coote. Brooks made a big error while on VAR duty during Brighton's game with Crystal Palace, and that mistake has not been tolerated.

Removing one man for one decision makes headlines, but anyone who has watched half a dozen games this season will know that the poor standard of refereeing is not limited to one man; Coote's name may be familiar because he was the referee who recently missed a glut of potential red cards during Liverpool's FA Cup defeat to Brighton including a crunching foul from Fabinho that even he expected to walk for.

Also read: How Man City should line up vs Arsenal in massive Premier League encounter

The standard of refereeing has been a collective failure this season - all of those who wrongly allowed the Bruno Fernandes goal to stand in the derby have a match this weekend - and one change will not make a difference.

All the talk this week has been geared towards if City win. They can go top of the table and will really have the momentum over an Arsenal team that will have seriously wobbled.

That is all true, although what if City don't get the three points? A draw - depending on the performance - will be enough for many to still view them as favourites but defeat in North London will reinforce Arsenal's credentials as the team to beat and raise further questions about City consistency.

The first question is if Erling Haaland will be fit enough to be on the pitch. Should he make it on, the Norwegian then has a few personal scores to