adminGary Neville fumes at ‘ridiculous’ VAR decision in Man United vs Nottingham Forest
During his Sky Sports commentary, Gary Neville launched into a furious rant after Matheus Cunha’s goal for Manchester United against Nottingham Forest was permitted to stand. Following an opener from Luke Shaw, which was canceled out by Morato’s equalizer for Forest, United regained the lead when Cunha calmly finished past Mats Selz inside the box.
The goal, however, sparked major controversy due to Bryan Mbeumo handling the ball in the lead-up. The Cameroonian’s shot was blocked, and the ball then fell to Cunha, who made it 2-1. The on-field decision was a goal, triggering a mandatory VAR review. To the surprise of many, referee Michael Salisbury upheld the original call, announcing at Old Trafford that the goal would stand because the handball was deemed “accidental.”
Despite his longtime affiliation with United, former club captain Neville strongly disagreed with the ruling. He fumed: “The goal stands? Oh my goodness. That is an absolute shocker in every single way. Honestly, that is ridiculous. The amount of time it’s taken. The VAR have been quite clear to the referee. They have said, this should be disallowed, he’s handballed it, he’s controlled it with his arm and brought it into play. The referee has gone over to that screen and overruled the VAR. I can’t believe what I’ve just seen.”
According to IFAB rules, a handball offense occurs if a player “scores a goal against the other team with their hand/arm or scores immediately after the ball has touched their hand/arm (even if the touch was accidental).” Neville noted that the Premier League Match Centre had explained the handling was considered accidental because the ball bounced up from Mbeumo’s hip.
Had Mbeumo been the goalscorer instead of Cunha, it appears the goal would have been disallowed.
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