PGMOL chief Howard Webb has admitted Liverpool were wrongly denied a penalty in last month’s huge Premier League title clash with rivals Arsenal.
The game finished 1-1 at Anfield between the two title contenders but many fans of the Reds believed they should have been given the chance to win the game when Gunners captain Martin Odegaard handled the ball in the first half of the match.
The shouts from the Liverpool players were turned down but now Webb has admitted a penalty should have been awarded.
Speaking on the Sky Sports show ‘Match Officials Mic’d Up’ to host Michael Owen, the PGMOL chief said about the incident via The Athletic: “So do I. The referee on the field recognised that Odegaard had slipped and so his arm had gone towards the ground.
“We’ve talked in the past about supporting arms if somebody falls, breaks their falls with the arm and it’s all very natural.
“But in this situation there’s an important difference to a normal player falling.
“Odegaard doesn’t just accidentally fall on to the ball, he actually pulls his arm back in towards his body which is when the ball makes contact with the arm.
“The VAR looked at that aspect and he felt it was a case of Odegaard trying to actually make himself smaller by bringing the arm back towards the body.
“But whether it’s instinctive or deliberate he gets a huge advantage by bringing the arm back towards the ball.
“All the feedback we got after was very clear – the game expects a penalty in this situation and I would agree. This is one where we didn’t reach the right outcome on that basis.”
This was a major decision to get wrong as it could have a huge effect on the title race come the end of the season. Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp was bemused by the outcome at the time and he will be even more unhappy at the end of the campaign if it costs the Reds a Premier League title.
This season has seen referees come under huge scrutiny from pundits and fans and this footage will not do anything to mend the trust in English officials.