An irate Chris Wilder was left frustrated his Sheffield United side were not awarded a penalty against Millwall – and criticised referee Sam Allison‘s actions from a year before. The Blades boss admitted he was not a fan of the official before claiming that Allison allegedly asked for Ross Barkley’s shirt when Sheffield United faced Luton Town in the Premier League last term.
Josh Coburn scored the only goal of the game as Millwall overcame the Yorkshire side at Brammall Lane. That result saw Wilder’s men miss out on the opportunity to go top of the Championship, and instead they sit two points behind Leeds and Burnley with just five matches remaining.
Wilder was frustrated to see Jake Cooper’s challenge on Anel Ahmedhodzic go unpunished by Allison. The Millwall defender appeared to haul the Bosnian star to the ground having received a warning for tugging his shirt moments before.
Allison waved away appeals for a penalty however. The inaction from the official prompted an angry response from Wilder following the game. And the 57-year-old manager was unafraid to express his misgivings about the referee which stretch back more than a year.
“Ah, 100 per cent,” said Wilder when asked if his side deserved a spot-kick. “I’m not a fan of the referee. I don’t think I should get into trouble, by the way, on that one if I’m being honest.
“I wasn’t a fan of him last season when he refereed us against Luton, when he was asking for Ross Barkley’s shirt. I don’t know who’s shirt he was after today but maybe the shirt on Anel’s back that got absolutely ripped to pieces.”
“I always think he wants to be the star of the show,” he added. I knew what was coming so I’m not surprised.”
Allison became the first black referee in 15 years to take charge of a Premier League match in December 2023. The 42-year-old took charge of Sheffield United vs Luton Town on Boxing Day to mark the first time a black official had taken charge of a top-flight game since Uriah Rennie in 2008.
After being promoted to officiating in the football league in 2020, Allison discussed his journey in the game. “As a black man in this world there are challenges, there are barriers, but when I relate it personally to refereeing it’s difficult to say I’ve had any barriers that I’m aware of because I’ve come through the system quite quickly,” he told the Guardian.
“I’m not saying I’ve been blinkered about what’s happened in these last few months in terms of racism and Black Lives Matter. It holds deeply, it’s heavily burdened on my heart. But you can only control what you can, and you can try and educate, and eradicate what you can.
“I feel I’ve done my apprenticeship, I’ve done my learning. I’ve got to my position and have not allowed anything to prevent me from being successful.”
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