“Referees Dropped After Failing to Award Penalty to Wolves in Manchester United Game”

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The referee and VAR officials involved in Manchester United’s win against Wolves have been dropped from officiating this weekend after failing to award a late penalty. PGMOL, the body responsible for refereeing in England, has stood down the referees after they failed to penalize a collision between the United goalkeeper and Wolves striker. The decision to drop the officials is part of an attempt to increase accountability for referees. Wolves head coach Gary O’Neil confirmed that former Premier League referee John Moss admitted the incorrect decision was made. Ali Humayun reported

The referee and the video assistant referees (VARs) who were involved in Manchester United’s 1-0 victory over Wolves on Monday have been removed from officiating matches this weekend after their failure to award a late penalty in the game. The Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), the organization responsible for refereeing games in England, has decided to stand down referee Simon Hooper, VAR Michael Salisbury, and Assistant VAR Richard West following their failure to give Wolves a penalty after a collision between United goalkeeper Andre Onana and Wolves striker Sasa Kalajdzic. The incident occurred in United’s penalty area during added time in the second half when Onana was trying to catch a cross. Despite the challenge, Hooper did not penalize Onana initially. The VAR reviewed the incident, but Hooper was not instructed to consult the monitor. Hooper also showed a yellow card to Wolves head coach Gary O’Neil for protesting after the incident. O’Neil revealed that former Premier League referee John Moss, who is now the Select Group 1 Manager at PGMOL, admitted that the decision was incorrect. Moss apologized and acknowledged that it was a clear penalty that should have been given. PGMOL’s decision to remove the referees for this weekend’s fixtures is part of an effort to increase accountability for officials under the leadership of boss Howard Webb. This includes communicating errors to clubs. Wolves experienced several apologies from Webb last season, and they notably had a goal disallowed in the FA Cup third round against Liverpool because VAR did not have the appropriate images to judge the offside angle. O’Neil expressed his surprise that the penalty was not awarded and believed it was a foul. He felt that when a goalkeeper goes for the ball and collides with an attacking player in such a forceful manner, it should be considered a foul. O’Neil also expected Hooper to review the incident using the VAR screen, but instead, he was booked by the referee. United manager Erik ten Hag admitted that the decision not to award a penalty could be debated, but he believed the correct call was made. United secured a 1-0 victory thanks to a second-half header from Raphael Varane. This match was O’Neil’s first in charge of Wolves, as he was appointed as Julen Lopetegui’s successor just five days earlier. United will next face Tottenham on Saturday evening, while Wolves will host Brighton earlier in the day..