Former Nottingham Forest striker Glenn Murray believes that his old side had a goal incorrectly chalked off against Luton Town on Friday.
The Reds lost 1-0 to the Hatters at Kenilworth Road after Kal Naismith despatched a penalty in the first half of the contest. The decision to award the spot kick for a hand ball was a controversial one, with fans fuming over the key moment in the game, but it appeared to be the correct one.
Steve Cooper's men appeared to have nabbed an equaliser in the second half when Djed Spence put the ball in the back of the net. The right-back was subsequently deemed to be offside in the lead up to the goal and it was ruled out.
REACTION: Nottingham Forest fans slam 'joke of a decision' against Luton Town
PLAYER RATINGS: How the Reds fared as winning run comes to an end
While Spence was indeed in an offside position when he was played in on goal, replays showed that the ball had come off a Luton defender after trying to intercept the pass on its way to the 21-year-old.
The game's rules state that an attacking player is not considered to have gained a deliberate advantage if an opponent deliberately plays the ball to him. Therefore, the goal should have stood by the letter of the law.
Murray said after the game that referee James Linington and his assistant had "let down" Forest with the decision, asserting that the goal should have stood by the letter of the law. However, the 38-year-old thinks the law itself is flawed.
"Yes, he has deliberately played the ball, but he has to because he has no idea where Djed Spence is," he told Sky Sports. "He has his back to Spence, he doesn't know he's crept just offside, he has to play the ball so there's a disparity in the rules.
"But the terminology, if that's done correctly, this goal should have stood. And if this goal stands at 1-1 in the second half, Nottingham Forest with the momentum the game's completely different.
"For me, the assistant and the referee have really let Nottingham Forest down there."
Get the latest Forest news straight to your inbox!
Manager Steve Cooper was in agreement with that statement when he spoke to the media after the final whistle. He believed it was an erroneous decision from the officials.
"For me, the Djed Spence goal is a huge error from the linesman. The left wing-back has played an obvious attempt, and played Djed in. That’s cost us.
“In saying that, we’ve missed a load of good chances. We had a couple in the first half, with Grabbs (Lewis Grabban). And we created more than enough chances in the second half to get at least one.
“There’s no doubt the best team in the game lost. But sometimes it goes that way.”
