Newcastle United will surely have felt cheated out of a penalty in their recent Premier League fixture after midfielder Sean Longstaff had his shirt pulled in the box.
The Magpies maintained their unbeaten record this season after they picked up a point in their 1-1 draw this past weekend. This result leaves them seventh in the Premier League table ahead of their upcoming midweek fixture.
After going 1-0 down to a wonderful Ruben Neves strike for Wolves from outside the penalty area, Newcastle levelled the score in the 90th minute thanks to an equally spectacular goal from star winger Allan Saint-Maximin.
However, it appears the Tyneside club could have had a far more comfortable afternoon, as Longstaff’s shirt was clearly pulled inside Wolves’ penalty area in the first half, which was ignored by the referee and the VAR assistant.
Newcastle were denied a penalty after a VAR check on this… ?#NUFC | #WOLNEW pic.twitter.com/hyr23iJv3O
— The Chronicle (@ChronicleNUFC) August 28, 2022
TIF Thoughts on the incident…
This is not the first controversial penalty decision we have seen in the Premier League already this season, as Lucas Digne from Aston Villa was penalised for a soft handball in their 3-1 loss against Crystal Palace. And it seems like we have another poor decision here.
Anywhere else on the field, this would surely have been given as a foul, as Matheus Nunes is evidently impeding, and in turn, fouling Longstaff. It is clearly obvious from the image that he is pulling the midfielder’s shirt in an effort to stop him from at least getting a shot on goal. The fact VAR officials looked at the incident makes the eventual decision even more unbelievable, in our view.
The standard of refereeing has taken a lot of criticism in recent seasons, especially since the introduction of VAR. This kind of incident will not help as it is an obvious penalty shout that was missed and one that could have completely changed the game.
Should Longstaff have gotten a penalty?YesNo |