Mike Dean controversy: 14 most unbelievable refereeing moments in football history

MIKE DEAN'S SECOND RED GETS HIM DEATH THREATS: Match official Mike Dean asked to be removed from this weekend's English Premier League schedule after two of his recent red card decisions (including against West Ham's Tomas Soucek, pictured) were overturned, prompting outlandish threats on his life. Footballers and the Referees Association have now spoken out against the abuse lobbed at Dean, saying what happens on the pitch needs to stay on the pitch. But Dean's recent 'controversial' calls pale in comparison to some of football's most bizarre refereeing moments in history.

CLIVE THOMAS' BIZARRELY TIMED WHISTLE: The Welsh referee drummed up major controversy at the World Cup in 1978. During a match between Brazil and Sweden, Thomas bizarrely allowed Brazil to take a corner kick in the final moments of extra time – only to interrupt play with a full-time whistle moments later. This disallowed a goal from Zico, which would have secured Brazil a 2-1 win.

PAUL GASCIOGNE BOOKS REFEREE DOUGIE SMITH: It was just meant to be a bit of fun. When referee Dougie Smith dropped a yellow card during a 1995 match, Rangers' Paul Gascoigne picked it up and playfully brandished it in front of Smith, ‘booking’ him. Despite the crowd laughing and understanding the spirit of the gesture, Smith didn’t find it as funny, and he booked Gazza immediately.

SCHUMACHER SENDS BATTISTON INTO COMA: In the 1982 Fifa World Cup between West Germany v France, Harald 'Toni' Schumacher brutally collided with French substitute defender Patrick Battiston, knocking him unconscious. Battiston later slipped into a coma; he also lost two teeth and suffered three cracked ribs. Dutch referee Charles Corver didn’t award a penalty, nor did he send off Schumacher. In fact, Schumacher took the goal kick and play resumed as if nothing had happened.

BEN THATCHER’S ELBOW PUTS PEDRO MENDES ON OXYGEN: Manchester City’s Thatcher’s collision with Portsmouth’s Mendes was so severe, that Mendes was carried off and placed on oxygen. And yet, Thatcher wasn’t sent off for the dangerous elbow to Mendes’ face – simply given a yellow card by ref Dermot Gallagher.

GRAHAM POLL GIVES JOSIP SIMUNIC THREE YELLOWS AND A RED: Everyone’s mind wanders sometimes – even referees. At the 2006 World Cup, referee Graham Poll gave Croatian player Josip Simunic three yellow cards, instead of the standard two. Inexplicably, he only sent Simunic off after a third yellow card.

WOLF-DIETER AHLENFELDER DRUNKEN HALF-TIME WHISTLE: The late German referee famously blew the half-time whistle 32 minutes into a match between SV Werder Bremen and Hannover 96 in the 1975-76 Bundesliga season. Players complained so Ahlenfelder consulted his assistant referee, who confirmed it was too early. Later, Ahlenfelder admitted he had been drinking before the match. After a short ban, he was allowed back on the job.

FRANK LAMPARD’S DISALLOWED WORLD CUP GOAL: It was so bad that Fifa president Sepp Blatter had to apologise for it. During the 2010 World Cup game between Germany and England, the score was 2-1 when Frank Lampard netted an equaliser. But the goal was disallowed. Linesman Mauricio Espinosa later admitted the goal was “very fast” and that he “did not see [it] properly”. “I feel quite sad about it because we had prepared for such a long time for the World Cup. It could have happened to anyone, unfortunately it was us. You just have to accept it. Life goes on,” he said.

LINESMAN BECOMES LOCAL HERO: One of the most contentious goals of all time happened in the 1966 Fifa World Cup Final. In extra time, England’s Geoff Hurst took a shot at goal, hitting the cross bar. The ball bounced down and was cleared. However, referee Gottfried Dienst check with his linesman Tofiq Bahramov, who decided that it was a goal. Bahramov became such an icon after that that Azerbaijan renamed their national stadium the Tofiq Bahramov Republican Stadium, with a massive statue of the linesman committing him to history.

REFEREE BRIAN SAVILL GETS ON THE SCORESHEET: Savill thought he’d only get a slap on the wrist for netting a goal for Wimpole back in 2002. The 42-year-old referee must have felt for the losing team, who were down 18-1 against Earls Colne reserves. When an opportunity presented itself, he brought the score up to 18-2 with a left-footed volley. However, he was suspended for ‘misconduct’ and subsequently resigned.

ANDRE MARRINER SENDS OFF THE WRONG MAN: It’s the kind of embarrassing mix-up that would have us waking up in bed drenched in sweat years later. Back in 2014, Marriner accidentally sent off Chelsea’s Kieran Gibbs after a deliberate handball committed by Arsenal’s Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. Despite the bizarre mistake, Chelsea won 6-0.

READING’S INFAMOUS ‘GHOST GOAL’: Referee Stuart Attwell has gone down in history for the Reading v Watford fixture of 2008, where he awarded a goal that never was to Reading. It had gone wide of the net and should have resulted in a corner, but nonetheless, the goal was recorded and Attwell felt the ire of Watford fans everywhere as the match ended in a 2-2 draw.

BALL BOY SCORES: Referee Silvia Regina de Oliveira in 2006 mistakenly allowed a goal scored by a ball boy during a fixture between Santacruzense v Atletico Sorocaba. She faced suspension after awarding the goal to the youngster who tapped the ball, which had gone out, past the goal line at the 89th minute, which enabled Santacruzense to equalise 1-1.

ROBERT HOYZER IMPRISONED FOR MATCH-FIXING: Robert Hoyzer was at the centre of one of the biggest scandals in German footballing history in 2005, when it emerged that there was a whopping €2 million in match fixing going on behind the scenes. Hoyzer accepted bribes and manipulated the outcome of several matches.

REFEREE REGRETS NOT SHOWING PICKFORD RED CARD: In a more recent example of mind-boggling refereeing, English international and Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford escaped scot-free after a season-ending tackle against Liverpool defender Virgil Van Dijk. The reason that Pickford wasn't booked was due to a call that Van Dijk's play was negated by a previous off-side ruling. Referee Michael Oliver has since said it was a mistake not to show Pickford a red card.