Howard Webb discusses c vs. Luton decision as VAR audio is revealed.
Following a penalty decision, VAR audio from Wolves’ 1-1 draw with Luton Town has been released.
cCarlton Morris scores a penalty against Wolves (Photo by Alex Broadway/Getty Images).
Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) chairman Howard Webb concedes that awarding a penalty against Wolves in the Premier League match against Luton Town has “divided opinion.”
Despite being down to ten men in the first half, Wolves led 1-0 at Kenilworth Road. However, 15 minutes after Pedro Neto put Gary O’Neil’s team ahead, referee Josh Smith gave the Hatters a penalty after Joao Gomes was ruled to have committed a handball offence.
O’Neil objected to the ruling because the ball deflected off Gomes’ foot before striking his hand. Despite the fact that the judgement was subjected to a VAR review, former Premier League referee Mike Dean disagreed with it.
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Webb has now explained the decision in a monthly presentation in which audio of specific VAR occurrences is released. The PGMOL chief spoke out about the handball law’s vagueness.
“There is disagreement. “The Laws of the Game have been simplified in terms of handball over the years,” he remarked on Match Officials Mic’d Up. “Not long ago, an arm above the shoulder was considered unnatural, and thus a handball would be awarded.”
“But those words have been removed, and the only words that have replaced them are ‘unnatural position,’ ‘unjustifiable position,’ risking your arm in that position in the first place.” The arm was improperly positioned considerably above the head, according to Josh Smith, the referee here.
“We always consult with the game’s stakeholders.” Perhaps we can use some freedom within the Laws of the Game to say what we believe should or should not be handball in the English game.
“However, we can’t really say that any deflection prevents a handball because then you have players standing in front of a shot, arms out wide, and a tiny, little deflection off a leg onto a full arm would prevent a penalty from being given.”
“Don’t forget the on-field decision was a penalty and then the VAR checked to see whether that decision was clearly and obviously wrong, and clearly the VAR John Brooks deemed it wasn’t because he saw the position of the arm above the head.”
The audio from the decision is also released on the show. Here’s a quick rundown of what was said
“However, we can’t really say that any deflection prevents a handball because then you have players standing in front of a shot, arms out wide, and a tiny, little deflection off a leg onto a full arm would prevent a penalty from being given.”
“Don’t forget the on-field decision was a penalty and then the VAR checked to see whether that decision was clearly and obviously wrong, and clearly the VAR John Brooks deemed it wasn’t because he saw the position of the arm above the head.”
The decision’s audio is also available on the broadcast. Here’s a summary of what was said:
“I think check complete, but I’m going to confirm it due to the position of the arm.”
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