Premier League panel says Arsenal wrongly penalised in Sunderland win
The Premier League’s Key Match Incidents panel has unanimously ruled that Arsenal should not have conceded a penalty in their 2-0 win at Sunderland on September 12, although VAR was backed for not overturning the on-field call.
John Brooks awarded Sunderland a spot-kick after deciding Arsenal defender Ezri Konsa had held Dan Ballard during a corner. Enzo Le Fee took the penalty, but David Raya made the save as the champions secured victory.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta reacted angrily after the game and the club sought an explanation from Pro Ref. The five-person panel agreed that Brooks had made the wrong decision, judging that Ballard’s own holding movement dragged Konsa towards him before both players went down.
However, the group voted 3-2 in favour of VAR Stuart Attwell’s decision not to step in. Its view was that the original penalty call did not meet the threshold for a clear and obvious error.
Arteta said he had reviewed the incident repeatedly and could not understand either the penalty award or the lack of VAR intervention. He added that such decisions could not be accepted given the level of preparation involved in top-flight football.
Haaland derby goal should have been ruled out
The same panel also unanimously concluded that Erling Haaland’s Manchester derby winner at Old Trafford on September 13 should have been disallowed for offside.
VAR Matt Donohue and assistant Blake Antrobus cleared Haaland’s position and allowed the goal to stand, but did not recommend that referee Michael Oliver review Enzo Fernández’s involvement. Fernández was offside and was deemed to have interfered with the ability of both the defender and goalkeeper to challenge for the ball.
The panel said a review should have been advised for a missed subjective offside offence in the attacking phase.
Pro Ref chief refereeing officer Howard Webb said Donohue had developed “tunnel vision”, concentrating on whether Haaland was offside and whether Fernández had touched the ball. Webb said the VAR team, including Antrobus, should have redirected that focus.
Donohue and Antrobus were removed from Premier League appointments last weekend. United were contacted to acknowledge the mistake, with a review of VAR procedures promised.
Foden dismissal upheld
The panel unanimously supported Michael Oliver’s decision to send off Manchester City’s Phil Foden in the same derby after he kicked out at United midfielder Bruno Fernandes.
It also believed Fernandes should have received a yellow card for his role in the confrontation. Had Oliver not dismissed Foden on the pitch, VAR could still have advised a caution for Fernandes while reviewing Foden’s red-card incident.
The Key Match Incidents panel consists of three former players or coaches, plus one Premier League representative and one Pro Ref representative.
