Premier League Panel Rules Sunderland Penalty Against Arsenal Incorrect

A Premier League Key Match Incidents panel has unanimously ruled that the penalty awarded to Sunderland during their September 12 match against Arsenal was incorrect.

The decision appears to support Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, who strongly criticised the penalty call after the match and questioned why VAR did not intervene.

Referee John Brooks awarded Sunderland a penalty after ruling that Arsenal defender Ezri Konsa had held Dan Ballard during a corner kick. Sunderland midfielder Enzo Le Fee stepped up to take the resulting spot-kick, but Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya saved it.

Arsenal eventually secured a 2-0 victory.

Following the match, Arteta expressed his frustration with the decision, saying he had watched the incident repeatedly but could not understand why a penalty had been given. Arsenal subsequently contacted Pro Ref to seek clarification on the decision.

According to the five-member Premier League Key Match Incidents panel, the penalty should not have been awarded.

The panel explained that although the incident involved significant physical contact, both players were involved in the holding action and ultimately fell to the ground as a result.

“Although it was a very untidy challenge in which Konsa initially had arms around Ballard, Ballard engages in a holding action which pulls Konsa onto him so they both fall to the floor,” the panel said.

However, the panel voted 3-2 to support VAR Stuart Attwell’s decision not to intervene. The majority concluded that the referee’s decision did not meet the threshold for a clear and obvious error requiring VAR intervention.

Arteta had described the decision as unacceptable, stressing that such incidents should not occur at the highest level of the game.

Panel Also Rules on Haaland’s Manchester Derby Goal

The panel also unanimously concluded that Erling Haaland’s winning goal in the Manchester derby earlier this month should have been disallowed for offside.

Haaland scored at Old Trafford on September 13, with the goal initially allowed to stand after VAR officials Matt Donohue and Blake Antrobus determined that the Manchester City striker was onside.

However, the officials did not ask referee Michael Oliver to review the involvement of Enzo Fernández, who was in an offside position and was judged to have interfered with play.

Pro Ref chief refereeing officer Howard Webb previously said Donohue appeared to have developed “tunnel vision” during the review, focusing primarily on whether Haaland was onside and whether Fernández had touched the ball.

Webb also said other members of the VAR team, including Antrobus, should have helped broaden the review. The two officials were subsequently stood down from the following weekend’s Premier League fixtures.

Pro Ref also contacted Manchester United to acknowledge the error and said it would review its procedures following the incident.

In its latest assessment, the panel said Fernández was in an offside position and attempted to play a nearby ball while affecting the ability of both the defender and goalkeeper to play it.

The panel concluded that a VAR review should have been recommended because of a missed subjective offside decision during the attacking phase.

Foden Red Card Backed

The panel also unanimously supported referee Michael Oliver’s decision to send off Manchester City’s Phil Foden during the same Manchester derby for kicking out at Manchester United midfielder Bruno Fernandes.

However, the panel determined that Fernandes’ actions during the incident also warranted a yellow card.

The panel noted that had Foden not been shown a red card on the field, VAR could have recommended a yellow card for Fernandes as part of the review of Foden’s dismissal.

The Key Match Incidents panel consists of three former players or coaches, one Premier League representative and one representative from Pro Ref.

Join us on our WhatsApp Platform @KOIKIMEDIA NEWS YOUR PAGE

Koikimedia Bringing the World 🌎 Closer to Your Doorstep