PGMOL chief Howard Webb may have to say sorry again after ref Chris Kavanagh didn't give Arsenal a penalty in their match against Chelsea.
The game ended in a thrilling 2-2 draw, with goals from Cole Palmer and Mykhaylo Mudryk for Chelsea, and Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard for Arsenal. But the match was marred by controversy when Kavanagh and the VAR team decided Robert Sanchez's late tackle on Gabriel Jesus wasn't a penalty.
This was similar to Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana's challenge against Wolves at the start of the season, which also didn't get a penalty. Webb had apologised to Wolves fans for that mistake and said he'd learn from it.
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But it seems that lesson was forgotten when Sanchez wasn't penalised for his tackle on Jesus, which Alan Shearer called "terrible". Talking about Onana's challenge, Webb said, via the Mirror: "Onana jumps into the Wolves player. (Sasa) Kalajdzic is just jumping up and not into Onana, so it's not two players coming together – It's one player going into the other. In the end, we didn't recommend a review."
"We should've done. We acknowledge that as an error in the opening week, which of course is disappointing. We took the learning from that and (will) obviously try going forward to ensure that type of error doesn't happen again."
Arsenal fans have compared Sanchez's challenge with Onana's and are struggling to find the difference. Shearer thinks the Gunners should've had a penalty. He told Match of the Day: "Sanchez has just come out and he wipes Jesus out."
"What is key for me is that he catches him in the head. Look, he goes right through him here. It's a terrible challenge. How on earth can the VAR not think that's a penalty and the referee? He is nowhere near the ball. They should have had a penalty, there is no doubt about it."
Sanchez was also at fault for Rice's goal, as he gifted him the ball in front of an open net. Arsenal's David Raya made a similar error but was unpunished. Shearer asked: "What on earth is he (Sanchez) doing there? I haven't got a clue. Just clear it and get rid of it."
Kavanagh's failure to award a penalty could have a big impact on the title race. Arsenal are second in the Premier League table, level on points with leaders Manchester City. Tottenham will go two points clear at the top if they beat Fulham at home on Monday.
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