Former Man United and Man City goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel was left fuming after West Ham’s late equaliser against Arsenal was disallowed on Sunday.
Callum Wilson thought he had rescued a point for the Hammers in stoppage time after Leandro Trossard put the Gunners 1-0 up on 83 minutes.
But his goal was ruled out following a lengthy delay after his team-mate Pablo was adjudged to have fouled David Raya in the build-up.
VAR official Darren England spent several minutes looking at replays of the incident, before he sent referee Chris Kavanagh to the screen to review it further.
There, Kavanagh ruled that Pablo had his arm across Raya’s chest, impeding him from catching the ball or parrying it away, with Arsenal going on to see the game out and open up a five-point lead over Pep Guardiola‘s side to close in on the Premier League title.
It was one of the most dramatic moments in Premier League history, but Schmeichel felt the officials made a huge mistake.
Peter Schmeichel was fuming after West Ham’s late equaliser against Arsenal was disallowed
Callum Wilson thought he had equalised but Pablo (No 19) was adjudged to have fouled David Raya
‘That decision today, it’s just so wrong on so many levels,’ he fumed on Viaplay. ‘What really makes me angry is that Arsenal would never be top of the league if that’s a free kick.
‘That’s how they’ve scored so many goals by blocking people, holding people, doing all kind of things, and then we get to this point… it takes VAR five minutes.
‘Darren England the VAR official, (it takes him) five minutes. He starts the replay over and over again. That in itself puts so much doubt into that decision. It cannot be a free kick, it cannot.’
Schmeichel continued: ‘I think it’s so wrong, I just don’t understand why all of a sudden that’s a free kick, because it’s not been for any teams all the way throughout the season.
‘All of this, it’s just crazy, and that decision today is just so wrong on so many levels.’
If Arsenal had drawn the game they would have only been three points ahead of City, who have a game in hand.
But the title race now remains firmly in their hands while West Ham are even closer to relegation, with the Hammers a point behind Tottenham having played a game more.
West Ham captain Jarrod Bowen was understandably frustrated after the match as he hit out at the length of the delay that led to the VAR overturn.
He said: ‘Because we’re on the receiving end, we’re going to feel hard done by. Goalkeepers are protected more than outfield players. There’s lots of holding and grappling going on in the box. The keeper has to expect contact, there’s going to be tussles.
‘I’m sure we could go back through every single game and find goalkeepers being fouled and not getting decisions. If you’re going to give it, you have to give it to every single one that happens week in, week out. Where’s the consistency?
‘When you look at the screen for five minutes, you’ll find something. I’m sure if you look long enough, you’ll find something. Do I think it’s the right decision? No.’
VAR looked at the incident for several minutes before Chris Kavanagh was sent to the screen
West Ham boss Nuno Espirito Santo later cut through the controversy with a dignified analysis of what had happened in those final seconds and how it had been allowed to happen in the first place.
‘There is a lack of consistency in the decisions,’ he said. ‘It is almost like a wrestling situation out there. No one understands what is a foul. The referees confuse themselves. Sometimes it is, sometimes it is not.
‘Everybody is trying to see what is the frontier of what is a foul and what is not. Everybody is confused. It is not up to us to judge. It is up to them to solve.’
Meanwhile, it was perhaps no surprise that Mikel Arteta agreed with the officials and he praised the mentality and bravery of Kavanagh.
‘Probably today I have realised how difficult and how big the referee’s job is,’ Arteta added. ‘Because you’re talking about a moment that can decide the history, the course of two massive clubs that are fighting with their lives to achieve their objectives. And the pressure is huge.
‘A call from the refs that I think is very brave, but very consistent with what they’ve been talking about all season. So when I have to be critical, I have been.
‘And today I have to praise them, at least for giving the option to a referee to decide. Away from the lights and the chaos, to give clarity to him to make the right call. And when you look at the action in that way, I think it is an obvious error.
‘And it is a free kick and the goal has to be disallowed. So congratulations because they made a big call in very, very difficult circumstances.’
