Officials’ Call Upheld on West Ham Equalizer
Referees correctly disallowed West Ham’s late equalizer against Arsenal, according to former Premier League official Dermot Gallagher. Callum Wilson scored deep into stoppage time, but VAR prompted referee Chris Kavanagh to overturn the decision.
Gallagher explained the sequence of events: “Between the officials, they came to the right decision. When you watch it, there is so much going on and to look at and what happens is you have to go in chronological order.”
He highlighted Pablo Fornals’ foul on Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya as the primary infraction. “Pablo puts his arm across Raya, he holds him, there is no doubt about that. Behind that, Declan Rice is engaged with Mavropanos, is that a penalty?”
“If you look at it in that order, definitely Pablo goes first, his arm is across Raya and at that point, Rice is reaching, he does get hold of him, there is no doubt about that. And if there is not a foul on the goalkeeper, that is definitely a penalty as Mavropanos is running towards the ball. But the first foul is definitely by Pablo.”
Experts Agree on Sequence and Impact
Former Premier League striker Jay Bothroyd concurred: “I completely agree and it is because of the magnitude of the game that it has taken so long, but they came to the right decision because Pablo’s arm is across Raya’s neck, Todibo is pulling on Raya’s shirt, so that is why it has to be given as a foul.”
Gallagher emphasized chronology: “It’s all about sequence. If the West Ham goalkeeper Mads Hermansen heads the ball, Pablo hasn’t engaged with Raya yet. He would have to head the ball before the shirt is grabbed. He doesn’t.”
The analysis continued: “What is the impact and what is the consequence. The impact is Pablo stopped Raya. He can’t go forward and attack the ball. Once he can’t attack the ball, he can’t make his goalkeeper challenge. His arm is across his chest and then he keeps his arm there, holding his arm down. Rice’s challenge on Mavropanos comes after. The foul on Raya had already occurred. You have to go in sequence order.”
Title Race Implications
The disallowed goal secured Arsenal’s victory via Leandro Trossard’s second-half strike. Mikel Arteta’s side now eyes the Premier League title, needing only a win over Burnley next Monday while Manchester City falters against Crystal Palace or Bournemouth in the coming week.
