Premier League referee signs autographs at half time – and Mike Dean lets rip
A Premier League referee was admonished by Mike Dean after he was spotted signing autographs at half-time in the fixture between Crystal Palace and Luton Town
Mike Dean slammed Premier League referee Sunny Singh Gill for signing autographs at half-time during Crystal Palace's clash against Luton Town.
The 39-year-old made history on Saturday (March 9) as he became the first British South Asian to referee in the Premier League as he took charge of the 1-1 draw between Crystal Palace and Luton at Selhurst Park.
Gill oversaw the tie that ended in thrilling fashion with Cauley Woodrow rescuing a point for the relegation-threatened side with a 96th minute equaliser.
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The official was a popular figure during the game thanks to his historic achievement, so much so that he was spotted signing autographs at half-time which former Premier League referee Mike Dean didn't take kindly to.
The 55-year-old called Gill's actions as "bang out of order" during Soccer Saturday but fans on social media had quite the opposite view to Dean with one X (formerly known as Twitter) writing: "Who cares what Mike Dean thinks? That guy was the biggest attention seeker of the lot, and continues to be now".
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Another said: "Good job he does not go to County Cricket Matches as umpires do it all the time when asked when walking off at lunch or at tea" while a third instead focused on Gill breaking barriers in refereeing as they commented: "So happy for him and proud of him! A momentous occasion for British Asians across the UK!"
Another user echoed their sentiments as they added: "Historic moment! Big shoutout to Sunny Singh Gill, paving the way as the first British South Asian referee in the Premier League".
The referee - who is a part-time prison officer - recently spoke about the influence his role can have on Asian children wanting to follow in his footsteps.
"You want the younger generation to look at you and think: 'I can also do it,'" he said in an interview with the Premier League website. "If parents are looking at us thinking: ‘Wow, we have Asian kids in the Premier League officiating games, my son can give that a go, my daughter can give that a go.'"