Premier League panel: Sunderland penalty wrong but ‘not a clear and obvious error’ | OneFootball

A Premier League panel has ruled Sunderland’s penalty against Arsenal was incorrectly awarded, but judged it was “not a clear and obvious error” for VAR to overturn.

NY Times reports that Mikel Arteta called John Brooks’s award of the spot kick unacceptable. Arsenal won 2-0 at the Stadium of Light.

The penalty came early in the second half when Brooks decided Ezri Konsa had pulled Dan Ballard down as the pair grappled at a long throw.

The five-person Key Matches Incidents (KMI) Panel unanimously deemed the on-field call wrong, noting Konsa’s challenge was untidy but that Ballard’s holding dragged Konsa onto him, causing both to fall.

Even so, the panel said the lack of VAR intervention was correct. Three members felt it was not sufficiently clear and obvious given both players’ actions, while two believed it should have been overturned.

David Raya saved Enzo Le Fee’s spot kick, and two minutes later Bruno Guimaraes put Arsenal ahead. Bukayo Saka added a late penalty to seal the win.

The KMI Panel is an independent group of five members, comprising three former players or coaches, one Premier League representative and one from Pro Ref, the organisation that oversees refereeing in England.

The result kept Arsenal’s 100 per cent start intact, a run that ended the following week with a three-goal defeat at Brighton & Hove Albion. Sunderland are 14th with four points from five matches.

Source: NY Times

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”