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Alan Smith praises Mike Dean over Bowen dive in West Ham's loss v Arsenal
Former Arsenal striker Alan Smith believes Mike Dean was right to book West Ham winger Jarrod Bowen for diving in defeat to Arsenal.
Bowen, 25, went down after a challenge from Arsenal keeper Aaron Ramsdale in the 54th minute.
However, Bowen was booked by referee Mike Dean after he adjudged there was no contact from the Arsenal keeper on Bowen.
Sky Sports pundit Alan Smith said on Sky Sports Premier League [1 May 17:44] that he felt Dean got the decision spot on.
Smith said: “That was a great call by the officials.
“Mike Dean could see Bowen was going down before there was contact and looking for it.”
He added: “The linesmen had the best view and he didn’t feel it was a foul.”
Tough call
This decision is a tough one to dissect.
There isn’t any contact from Ramsdale on Bowen, however, Ramsdale has flown in with his studs up and high.
If Bowen doesn’t jump out of the way, he could potentially end up with a nasty injury as a result.
This needs to be taken into consideration when making a decision.
The intent and speed that Ramsdale flies in with makes Bowen’s decision to go down and avoid contact a good one.
Bowen is not among the main culprits for going down too easily in the Premier League.
Anthony Gordon, Mo Salah and Bruno Fernandes are all far worse than the West Ham winger when it comes to going down easily.
This was a decision that could have gone either way and Ramsdale is very lucky that Bowen did dive out of the way.
Regardless of the decision, Ramsdale has shown an impulsive side to his game this season that can result in situations such as this.
He should consider himself fortunate on this occasion.
In other West Ham news, Tony Cottee says West Ham need ‘five or six’ summer signings, names two players to target
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