Ex-PGMOL chief says West Ham midfielder Edson Alvarez should have been sent off against Aston Villa.

As good as he is, Edson Alvarez can be an absolute liability. His hot head causes more trouble than West Ham would like. It’s almost like he gets fired up when he receives a yellow card as his tackling, somehow, gets even more rash.

After his yellow card against Aston Villa, there were a couple of dodgy challenges from the Mexican, but his challenge on Kamara was the most controversial, with ex-PGMOL chief Keith Hackett claiming that he should have received a second booking.

“Alvarez was very fortunate not to receive a second yellow card,” he told Football Insider.

“Referee Peter Bankes, from a good position, decided to keep his cards in his pocket. It was a foul and I can only assume that the referee was of the opinion it had some element of doubt about stopping a promising attack.”

“It was the referees call and of course the VAR under the criteria cannot come in on a yellow card offence. Alvarez in my opinion should have seen red.”

While it was probably a yellow, it was far from the official’s worst decision. A VAR check saw Digne, who committed multiple bad fouls, not get a red card despite lashing out at Paqueta and elbowing him. Although the connection wasn’t severe, it’s absolutely pathetic how little intent means in the modern game.

There’s also the fact that Tyrone Mings stopped a promising attack by catching the ball but didn’t receive a card. The fact he was injured is irrelevant, especially considering that he’s since come out and confirmed it’s not a particularly bad one.

With that being said, Alvarez desperately needs to sort his temper out or otherwise the club should prioritise a midfielder who isn’t going to risk a red card every single match.