adminO’Hara said on Sky Sports: “It’s a penalty. I’m sorry, I don’t care what anyone says-” Jamie O’Hara fumes after Tottenham decision leaves fans furious
Jamie O’Hara is still furious after Tottenham were denied a dramatic last-minute penalty in their Monday night clash with Leeds United. Mathys Tel experienced a rapid shift in fortune, scoring a spectacular goal only to then concede a cheap penalty by attempting an overhead kick clearance inside his own box.
Spurs pushed hard for a winner that would have lifted them four points clear of West Ham, but couldn’t find it. As a result, they now sit only two points above the relegation zone with just two games left to play.
The penalty Tottenham didn’t get
Relegation remains a real threat, but Spurs might be closer to safety if they had been awarded a stoppage-time penalty. James Maddison went down after a risky tackle by Lukas Nmecha. At first glance, it seemed a clear-cut spot kick.
However, VAR replays showed Nmecha made slight contact with the ball, leading to the penalty being waved away. That touch was decisive, especially as it came during the initial challenge.
There was no second attempt or delay in making contact with the ball, making it a legal tackle. Most agree that if the ball is played, it shouldn’t be a penalty—but former Spurs midfielder O’Hara disagrees strongly.
Speaking on Sky Sports, O’Hara said: “It’s a penalty. I don’t care what anyone says. You can show me a million angles—where does the ball move? I don’t see enough movement from the ball or the player. That ball does not move. That is a penalty.”
He added: “The referee bottled it. We saw a crazy decision at West Ham the other day that was a foul, and they took ages over it—looked at it for five minutes. Here, they reviewed the Nmecha challenge for 30 seconds and moved on.”
Some Spurs fans might agree, but the review was quick because touching the ball on an initial lunge without plowing through the opponent is legal. Once that was confirmed, there was no need to look further.
It was a harsh break for Tottenham, and while Nmecha was lucky to reach the ball given the riskiness of his challenge, he pulled it off and got away with it.
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