Rob Styles is no stranger to controversy. The 44-year-old referee used to be one of the best in the business but he appears to have a blind spot when it comes to deciding what is a penalty and what is a legitimate challenge.

Habib Beye, the Newcastle United defender, got the ball first when he tackled Robinho during his team's 2-2 draw with Manchester City last night, but that did not stop Styles from sending off the Senegal player and awarding the visiting team a penalty.

Boos echoed around the stadium as Robinho beat Shay Given from 12 yards, but Styles is getting used to that kind of reception. Last month at Old Trafford he hit the headlines with a shocking decision when he awarded Manchester United a penalty against Bolton Wanderers after Jlloyd Samuel tackled Cristiano Ronaldo cleanly in the penalty area. United players and supporters were almost as surprised by the decision as Gary Megson, the Bolton manager, who described it as a “cataclysmic cock-up”.

Styles awarded a penalty last season after Steve Finnan did little more than breathe on Florent Malouda during Liverpool's 1-1 draw with Chelsea at Anfield. He apologised to Liverpool for his mistake and was banned from officiating on the next weekend. “He got it wrong,” Keith Hackett, general manager of the Professional Game Match Officials Board, said.

Styles was feeling sorry for himself again last season when, despite having had a clear view of a legitimate shoulder charge by Sun Jihai, then of Manchester City, on Gary McSheffrey, he awarded a penalty to Birmingham City. Once again he was sanctioned by Hackett after Sven-Göran Eriksson, the usually mild-mannered former City manager, questioned his judgment. “The decision against us was, well, wrong,” Eriksson said.

Another manager who will not be sending a Christmas card to Styles is Neil Warnock. The former Sheffield United manager, who is now in charge of Crystal Palace, has not forgiven Styles for awarding Liverpool a penalty against Sheffield United at Anfield in February 2007. Warnock is also haunted by Styles's refusal to award his side a penalty against Manchester United at Old Trafford that April. “I can never, ever forgive Rob Styles,” Warnock said. “Never in a million years. I hope I never see him again.”