PGMOL boss Howard Webb has backed Jared Gillett and the VAR officials for their decision to overturn a penalty following Nick Pope’s challenge on Viktor Gyokeres during Arsenal’s 2-1 win away at Newcastle on Sunday.
Webb clarified the situation on Sky Sports’ Match Officials Mic’d Up, telling Michael Owen that Pope’s touch on the ball made it a “clean challenge” making the original call a “clear error”.
The contentious incident came after the Gunners were awarded a 14th-minute spot kick at St. James’ Park. Gyokeres latched on to an errant back pass by Jacob Murphy, and looked to touch the ball past the onrushing Englishman in the home side’s net. The striker’s touch then struck Pope’s foot, before the pair came together, prompting Gillett to point to the spot.
Gillett was summoned to review the footage by the VAR, sparking a lengthy delay where the Australian and his colleagues studied the incident. In his on-pitch announcement, Gillett said: “After review, the Newcastle goalkeeper plays the ball and there is no foul. The final decision is drop ball.”
With some fans still not pleased with the decision, Webb took to the Sky Sports studios to review the incident further alongside Owen. The former England striker quizzed Webb if the decision met the threshold for an overturned decision.
Viktor Gyoekeres is fouled by Nick Pope of Newcastle United resulting in a penalty being given which was overrulled following a VAR check. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
Owen said: “It looked like the referee took a little bit of convincing, he had a good look at the monitor, which is absolutely fine. But are you happy that it was such a wrong decision that it needed reversing, because some people still think that even though there was a touch, it was still a penalty. Are you happy that it was clear and obvious enough to reverse the decision?”
Webb replied: “I am. You know we work with referee’s call, it’s an important principle in the Premier League, where the call will be made on the field by the referee, it only gets overturned if when the referee looks at the footage he sees no reason at all to support the decision. There’s no mix of considerations, it’s a clear error.
“In this one when you see Pope reach out with that foot, play the ball cleanly before making any contact with the opponent, in fact he doesn’t make any real contact with the opponent they come together as a normal consequence of that clean challenge by Pope, the referee hadn’t recognised that touch. That was important, the VAR saw it. It was a clear error. I agree with the VAR’s intervention. So the referee can go to the screen look at the full sequence, see that touch, see there’s a normal playing action by Pope, and the penalty was rightly cancelled.”
Despite Webb’s claim, former Premier League referee Mark Halsey dissented with that interpretation of the law, claiming the spot kick should have stood.
Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka reacts as Referee Jarred Gillett overturns his decision to award a penalty kick ( Getty Images)
He explained in his piece with Sun Sport, “Gyokeres’ penalty should not have been overturned. Newcastle goalkeeper Pope got a touch on the ball but he did not win the ball. The touch does not negate the award of a penalty. Why did VAR get involved? It was not a clear and obvious error from referee Jarred Gillett.
“The on-field decision should have stood. Gyokeres played it on to Pope, that is how he got the touch and then there is a late challenge and brings him down. How many times do you see a foul given for a player that wins the ball and follows through? The touch does not mean it is not a penalty. VAR should not have got involved.”
