I won’t sit on the fence – Mike Dean ready to criticise referees in new role

Mike Dean is now a pundit (Adam Davy/PA)

Referee-turned-pundit Mike Dean says he will not have any issue in telling former colleague Simon Hooper how badly he got things wrong by not giving Wolves a penalty in their defeat at Manchester United on Monday.

Hooper and VAR officials Michael Salisbury and Richard West have been stood down for this weekend by Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) boss Howard Webb after they collectively failed to award Gary O’Neil’s side what looked like a blatant spot-kick in added time of the 1-0 loss at Old Trafford.

Dean quit his role as a dedicated VAR and coach of up and coming officials in the summer in order to move into a role as a pundit on Sky Sports’ Soccer Saturday.

And the 55-year-old, who made his debut on the show last week, has warned his former colleagues that he “won’t be sitting on the fence” when it comes to discussing controversial decisions.

“I’ve had a chat with a few of the referees and made it clear that if they make a bad decision, I won’t be sitting on the fence or defending the indefensible and they were OK with that,” he told the PA news agency.

“I want to be able to do the job properly and give proper insight.

“Equally, I’ll be happy to highlight good decisions as it will be good to give refs some credit.”

Dean was an on-field referee for 27 years – 22 of those in the Premier League – and was undoubtedly one of the biggest characters in the game, with his antics and exaggerated facial expressions prime content for online memes.

His final year for the PGMOL was spent at Stockley Park as a dedicated VAR and he admits he did not get the same satisfaction.

Simon Hooper will not referee this weekend after failing to award Wolves a penalty against