adminIn North London, the officiating and VAR once again took center stage during the match between Tottenham and Leeds United, with the visiting side appearing to be denied a penalty.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin should have been awarded a spot kick after Tottenham defender Destiny Udogie pulled him down, but VAR ruled the Leeds striker offside, disregarding previous precedents.
In the 69th minute, referee Jarred Gillett made an obvious error by not penalizing Mathys Tel for a high boot on Leeds captain Ethan Ampadu. VAR then intervened, prompting the on-field official to review the incident on the monitor, leading him to overturn his original call and correctly award a penalty to Leeds.
The Premier League released a statement explaining the decision, confirming that the right call was ultimately made thanks to the use of technology.
The statement on X read: “After VAR review, the referee overturned the original decision of no penalty to Leeds. Referee announcement: ‘After review, Tottenham number 11 commits a foul on the Leeds attacker. The final decision is penalty kick.’”
Leeds should have been given another penalty as well. Destiny Udogie clearly pulled down Calvert-Lewin, and only a marginal offside call saved Tottenham.
However, VAR failed to apply the “tolerance rule” that had been used earlier this season, when a Florian Wirtz goal for Fulham stood despite a similarly tight offside decision—a ruling previously backed by the Premier League’s KMI panel. That same standard was not applied in Calvert-Lewin’s favor.
Additionally, Gillett missed a clear foul on Ampadu, and VAR had to step in to ensure Leeds received a well-deserved penalty.
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