Soccer Aid fans were left fuming during the first half of the charity match at the London Stadium on Sunday as YouTube star Chunkz was taken off penalty duty despite winning the spot-kick for England.
The Three Lions forward had earlier given away a penalty after bringing down Patrice Evra in England’s box, with TikTok star Noah Beck smashing past David James from the spot to give the World XI a 1-0 lead after 22 minutes. Chunkz didn’t need long to make amends though, going down himself in the box following a challenge from Beck three minutes before half-time.
Chunkz picked up the ball immediately and seemed to be in line to take the important spot-kick before he was called away from his teammates, with reality star Mark Wright instead stepping up and squeezing the ball past Chelsea legend Petr Cech in the bottom left corner of the goal to level the game.
READ MORE: Soccer Aid 2022 LIVE: Mark Wright penalty past Petr Cech draws England level before half-time
The YouTuber appeared slightly frustrated at the decision but was able to laugh it off when interviewed on the pitch as he was coming off at half-time, telling the ITV cameras that one of his England teammates had seen him lining up for the penalty and quickly shouted to manager Harry Redknapp to call for a different taker.
The studio pundits were all in agreement that Chunkz should have taken the kick too, with Jermain Jenas praising him for having the confidence to step up while England legend David Beckham said: “I wish Chunkz would have taken it but it was the manager’s choice.”
On Twitter, many fans agreed with Jenas and Beckham, with @Pryde92 saying: “Chunkz robbed there.. should of been allowed to take the pen since he won it!!” while @alexcotney said: “Because he scored it doesn't make it the decision right. Chunkz won the pen. It's a charity game not the world cup.”
Others were more sympathetic with Wright, with @SarahLizzie94 saying: “Mark asked for the penalty but it was managers choice - don't blame Mark alone for Chunkz not taking the penalty.”
