The Premier League have provided official, if vague, explanations for the referee’s decision to deny Manchester United a penalty against Bournemouth and then award the Cherries a spot kick for a very similar offense—a series of events which the usually placid Michael Carrick denounced as “mental.”
United’s ragged 2–2 draw with Bournemouth on Friday night was defined by 27 seconds three quarters of the way into the contest.
With the visitors already one goal to the good thanks to a Bruno Fernandes penalty after a blatant foul on Matheus Cunha, Amad Diallo went down under contact from Adrien Truffert demanding a second spot kick. Referee Stuart Attwell waved play on and less than half a minute later Ryan Christie fired Bournemouth level, taking advantage of the frazzled minds in United’s rearguard.
Much to the frustration of the beleaguered faces clad in sweaty white nylon, Attwell was in no mood to change his mind. Video assistant referee (VAR) Craig Pawson agreed. Tempers flared once again when Harry Maguire was penalized for a shove on Evanilson which Carrick defined as “pretty much identical.” The United center back, fresh from an England call-up and advanced contract talks, was promptly sent off.
“We should have had another penalty. Obviously, if you get one, you must get the other,” Carrick seethed to Sky Sports at the final whistle.
“It’s pretty much identical for me, two-hand grab. Either way, he’s got one wrong, but to give one and not give the other, I can’t get my head around it, I think it’s crazy. It’s a bit baffling, really.”
Why Man Utd Were Denied a Second Penalty
The Premier League’s official match center X account made it pretty clear that the VAR thought little of Amad’s attempts to win a spot kick. Pawson deemed that “the contact was not sufficient for a foul.”
Truffert clearly placed two hands on Amad’s upper body, although whether the force applied was actually enough to turf the diminutive forward over is a question only United’s No. 16 can answer.
Ultimately, this is a judgement call. As no clear and obvious error took place in the eyes of VAR—that several pundits agreed with the call suggests some doubt exists—there is no scope to overrule the referee’s on-field decision. The same logic can be applied at the other end of the pitch.
Maguire planted his hands on almost the exact same part of Evanilson’s body as Truffert had during the tangle with Amad. However, the Premier League judged that particular contact to be a “holding offense.”
As BBC Sport’s football issues correspondent Dale Johnson pointed out, every decision is made in isolation. “VAR’s role is not, and ever has been, to create consistency of decision making.” In reality, VAR actually showed plenty of consistency by sticking with the decision the on-pitch referee made on each occasion.
Why Was Harry Maguire Sent Off?
Maguire’s misery was compounded by a straight red card.
The Premier League later clarified that Maguire had been guilty of denying a goal scoring opportunity (DOGSO). As he was deemed to have made “no attempt to challenge for the ball”—tugging Evanilson over without a prod of the leg in a tackle—he had to be given his marching orders rather than a yellow card, in accordance with Law 12 in the FA Handbook.
As this was a case of DOGSO rather than serious foul play, Maguire will only be suspended for one game. However, the sparse nature of Manchester United’s calendar means that he will have to wait 29 days before getting back on the pitch at club level.
Thanks to the international break and the Easter weekend of FA Cup quarterfinals, United’s next fixture isn’t until a visit from Leeds United on April 13. Maguire will have to watch that fiery affair from afar before he can join the team in a momentous trip to fellow Champions League chasers Chelsea on April 18. Fortunately, Maguire will have a couple of England internationals this month to keep his match rhythm up.
Bruno Fernandes Asks Serious Questions of the Referee
Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes hinted that referee Attwell didn’t give in to Amad’s appeals because he had already pointed to the spot in favor of the Red Devils earlier that night.
“I think we could have gone 2–0 up, and then we ended up conceding a goal, not getting a penalty and then we get a penalty against, where more or less it’s the same situation as Amad,” Fernandes lamented to Sky Sports after the final whistle.
“One is rewarded as a penalty, the other one not. I know it’s difficult for the referee to give two penalties in the same game for the same team but what I don’t understand is why VAR doesn’t get involved in that situation.
“Either one is a penalty and the other one too or none of them is a penalty.”
Fernandes was not alone in making that argument but it’s one that fell on deaf ears.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘Mental’—Premier League Explain Decisions That Left Michael Carrick ‘Baffled’.
