NORTH-East linesman Nigel Miller was again at the centre of controversy last night when Arsenal appealed against the sending-off of Sol Campbell in Wednesday night's match with Manchester United.
The 43-year-old assistant referee, who works as a police sergeant in Bishop Auckland, flagged the moment he saw the England defender's elbow apparently catch Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in the face.
Miller, who lives in Witton Gilbert near Durham City, could be heard on television telling referee Mark Halsey that Campbell's actions in the 82nd minute of the pulsating 2-2 draw had been "deliberate".
Last year, The Northern Echo revealed that Miller had turned out for Leeds United's high pressure match with Manchester United when he was on sick leave suffering from stress.
Durham police chiefs gave him their blessing and doctors said the exercise would be therapeutic and help him recover.
He has since returned to work, and been promoted by the football authorities so that he now referees Nationwide League matches.
In the Campbell incident he recommended a yellow card and said anything more severe was for Halsey to decide.
Halsey asked Miller to confirm that the elbowing was deliberate then dismissed Campbell.
The decision means that Campbell faces a four-match ban, which would rule him out of the FA Cup final on May 17 - ironically a game which Miller will definitely be at, running the line. Campbell will, though, be available to play at Middlesbrough on Saturday.
Last night Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger told the club's official website: "We will appeal. I have seen it again on the video and it was obviously accidental.
"Sol didn't mean to hurt Solskjaer and his reaction did not help. A four-game ban would be very unjust."
Miller, who was yesterday attending the funeral of a football official in the North-East, would only say: "The matter is now in the hands of the Football Association."
The loss of Campbell to an Arsenal defence which doesn't have great depth would be critical to the side as they chase the title. The ban would mean that as well as the Cup final against Southampton, he misses the Premiership games at home to Leeds and Southampton, plus the last-day trip to relegated Sunderland.
Arsenal look certain to cite video evidence in their appeal. A camera behind Miller when the incident happened appears pretty damning, but from another angle it appears as if Solskjaer collapsed when caught by Campbell's stray hand.
Campbell last night reiterated his innocence and said Halsey was prepared to look at the video evidence.
Campbell said: "I have spoken to the ref and he is willing. He seems receptive to what I said.
"Yes, I touched him (Solskjaer) but it was not deliberate. I was just palming him off and trying to clear the ball in the same action.
"It wasn't as though I was turning round, looking for him, looking to injure or maim him."
"I was trying to protect the ball and it was not a case of swinging the arm into his face, although it could have looked that way to the naked eye with the way his head swung back.
''I am hopeful the referee will find it in his heart to make the right decision for me from the video, although I accept that he had to stand by his linesman.
''If not then that's probably it. That's my season - and it will be tough because I've worked bloody hard to get this far.
''I'm honest and I told Solskjaer 'come on, it wasn't deliberate'. And he got up straightaway.
"If I had really elbowed him he would have struggled."
The Gunners privately blame the Norwegian for goalkeeper David Seaman sustaining broken ribs in a game at Old Trafford six years ago.
It would be difficult, too, to imagine United encouraging Solskjaer to help a major opponent out of a hole with the Premiership title fight so delicately balanced between the two clubs.
But for Arsenal, skipper Patrick Vieira's almost certain absence from the next two away games at Middlesbrough and Bolton could be even more damaging than a Campbell ban.
The inspirational French star has struggled with a knee injury since Arsenal's Champions League clash with Roma in March, and after quitting last Sunday's FA Cup semi-final win over Sheffield United after 56 minutes, lasted only 34 minutes against United.
The Gunners hope to have Seaman back for tomorrow's visit to the Riverside Stadium, after he missed Wednesday's game with a heavy cold.
* The ground has been patiently prepared - now Ruud van Nistelrooy wants Manchester United to go on and bury Arsenal's title dream, writes MARK BRADLEY.
Van Nistelrooy's brilliant opener in the 2-2 draw at Highbury was his 37th goal of the campaign, one more than the prolific forward's impressive tally in his first season.
With seven strikes in his last four League games, it is easy to see how United have not just managed to overhaul the Gunners over the past month but also demolish their goal difference advantage.
Van Nistelrooy said: ''We've come back into the race from a long way behind. Now it's up to us to finish it off.
''Everyone went crazy when they went in front. But we reacted and now it's still wide open.''
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