There's nowhere other than Old Trafford to start this week's column from, with Pro Ref even admitting their mistake in the aftermath of the Manchester derby and the controversies that the game produced from an official standpoint.
Controversy at Old Trafford
That the biggest takeaway from the game came as a result of a lack of VAR intervention in the aftermath of the play leading to the winning goal is going to reignite the debate as to the competency of officials being placed in such responsible positions.
"Enzo Fernandez in the middle is in an offside position and makes an attempt to head the ball and misses," Hackett noted in his post-match comments.
"In my opinion, at this point he has become active and impacted the Man Utd defender. Haaland also looks to be in an offside position when the ball is crossed into the penalty area.
"I expect a great deal of media debate on the decision to allow the goal. The offside flag was correctly raised before VAR intervened and, after a delay, ruled the goal should be allowed. Frankly, I am gobsmacked.
"The action by Fernandez, attempting to dive and head the ball from an offside position, shows that he is clearly involved in active play, and this is the reason why the offside flag was raised. At this point, the goal should have been ruled out."
Foden's ban could be increased
Unfortunately for the refereeing team, it wasn't the only controversy of the day.
"Michael Oliver is our number one referee; therefore, his selection was not a surprise. However, he should've given Man Utd captain Bruno Fernandes a yellow card for actions that led Phil Foden to retaliate, leaving the official with no choice but to show a red card," Hackett added.
"Not only do I expect Foden to receive a ban, but it may be increased because of his delay in leaving the field of play. This will depend on the content of the referee's report, but I am disappointed that Oliver took no action against Fernandes for his initiation of the problem."
Prior to the Manchester derby, referee John Brooks had an entertaining game to deal with at the Stadium of Light, as reigning champions Arsenal travelled to Sunderland.
Great performance by John Brooks at the Stadium of Light
The Black Cats had won one, drawn one and lost one of their three games ahead of their test against the North Londoners, and this match was always going to have an edge to it, given that former Newcastle captain, Bruno Guimaraes, was up against his former club's biggest rivals, and former Gunners captain, Granit Xhaka, was playing against his old employers.
No quarter was asked or given by either side, and that was evident in the number of cards shown in the game.
"Reinildo Mandava was correctly shown a yellow for a reckless challenge on Arsenal's Saka," Hackett continued.
"At the start of the season, Howard Webb announced that referees would be taking action on holding offences, so it was very good to see John Brooks point to the penalty spot following Dan Ballard being dragged to the floor by Ezri Konsa.
"Yes, both players were holding each other, with the referee judging that Konsa was the initial offender.
"Sunderland finished the game with 10 men, John Brooks rightly pulling out a second yellow card followed by the red, after Reinildo brought down Bukayo Saka.
"I am pleased that the official also showed Mikel Arteta a yellow card for not staying within his technical area.
"Arteta is not alone; however, he is a serial offender. The reason the front of the edge of the technical area is one yard from the touchline is to ensure that the assistant referee has a full, unobstructed view of the touchline."
Disasi deserved to go
Farai Hallam had little to do in the Chelsea v Hull City game, suggesting that he and his colleagues had got their decisions spot on during the match. There was some controversy when the Blues weren't awarded a penalty; however, Hackett was in full agreement with the on-field decision.
"The penalty kick was not awarded because it was not definitive that the ball came into contact with the hand, so it was the correct decision," he said. "Clearly, had contact been made by an extended arm away from the defender's body, that would be a signal for the referee and VAR to award a penalty."
Chris Kavanagh also had a good game, overseeing Crystal Palace vs Ipswich Town, with the only incident of note, Axel Disasi's red card, being dealt with promptly.
"Disasi received a straight red card for a serious foul challenge on Jack Clarke. The Frenchman caught the Ipswich Town attacker on the shin and racked his studs down the leg of his opponent. The Referee acted decisively and was 100% correct," Hackett suggested.
Emery is in the wrong
Aston Villa scored their first goal of the season but still ended on the losing side against Nottingham Forest, compounding their poor start to the 2026/27 campaign.
After the game, an under-pressure Unai Emery was angered by the decision not to reduce Forest to 10 men after a foul on Ian Maatsen.
"I do hope that Emery looks at the video replays again because this challenge does not fulfil the laws of the game for Serious Foul Play," Hackett argued. "The referee, Andy Madley, got it right when he issued a yellow card for a reckless challenge."
Bournemouth vs Brentford passed without too much incident, and that's likely to be due to the continuing emergence of Jarred Gillet as an official of some standing.
"Referee Jarred Gillet delivered a good performance, demonstrating excellent fitness and good quality decision-making. He is also a confident official prepared to allow the game to flow, applying some good advantages without putting his control at risk," Hackett noted.
There was little to worry Thomas Bramall at the Liverpool v Fulham fixture, or Darren England in the Tottenham v Everton game, both officials taking any match incidents in their stride.
The crowd at the Coventry City v Brighton game weren't at all happy, and that was nothing to do with the performance of Tony Harrington or his team, even if the supporters made their feelings known when the official sent off Taiwo Awoniyi.
"Awoniyi was shown a straight red card for elbowing Maxim de Cuyper in the face. At first glance, there didn't look to be much in it, but then from a different angle you could see his elbow connect with de Cuyper's face. A good spot from Tony Harrington, and the correct decision to show an instant red card," Hackett concluded.
Jason Pettigrove has been the features writer for Flashscore since 2025, utilising Opta data to form the basis of his articles. He has previously worked for high profile football clubs, news and media outlets, both in print and digital, and can usually be found watching FC Barcelona when time permits. You can read more of his pieces here.
