Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - November 12, 2022. Manchester City's Erling Braut Haaland, Ilkay Gundogan and Manuel Akanji remonstrate with referee Peter Bankes.
Manchester Evening News journalist Alex Brotherton has reacted to VAR’s decision not to award a penalty during Manchester City‘s clash against Brentford in the Premier League this afternoon.
The Lowdown: Honours even
The Sky Blues hosted the Bees at the Etihad Stadium but suffered a shock 2-1 defeat, with two first-half goals coming from Ivan Toney and Phil Foden, before Thomas Frank’s number 17 netted the winner in stoppage time as he doubled his tally for the day.
One of the most notable moments other than the goals was when Rico Henry stuck out an arm on the edge of the penalty area to try and prevent Bernardo Silva’s cross coming in from the byline, but despite a VAR check, no spot kick was given.
The Latest: Brotherton’s reaction
Taking to Twitter, Brotherton was shocked by the decision and insisted that City should have been handed the chance to score from the 12-yards spot.
He fumed: “Peter Walton saying on BT Sport that there was no conclusive evidence that the handball took place inside the box – looked pretty clear to me that the ball was on the line. Should have been a penalty.”
The Verdict: No need to panic
With the incident taking right on the edge of the penalty box, it did seem difficult to conclusively deduce if it was in or outside the white line, but Brotherton’s stance is understandable when such a marginal call could easily have gone for the home side on a different occasion.
Whilst City would have wanted to secure victory against lower-placed opposition, there’s definitely no cause for concern when it comes to the Sky Blues’ form this season.
Should City have been awarded a penalty?
Yes
No
The Manchester outfit have won 10, drawn two and lost just two of their opening 14 league games, leaving them two points behind current leaders Arsenal ahead of their trip to Molineux tonight.
The title race will rage on for some time given how tight it is at the top, and Guardiola will be given the perfect chance to regroup his team during the international break and get them ready for the return of domestic action after Christmas.
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