Will Bruno Fernandes' record-breaking Premier League assist be removed? | OneFootball

New footage has thrown Premier League assist king’s record into doubt

Bruno Fernandes was crowned the Premier League assist king on Sunday, but some have suggested his crown could be taken away.

The Manchester United captain, who has been named Player of the Season by the Premier League, made history in the final match of the season when Patrick Dorgu headed home from his corner delivery against Brighton.

It was the 21st league assist of the season for Fernandes, breaking the record set by both Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne.

The moment prompted wild scenes of celebration among the United players on the south coast, along with an avalanche of congratulary social media posts from United and beyond.

But footage from goal-line cameras has since emerged suggesting that Dorgu’s header came off the crossbar, hit Seagulls goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen and then went in.

By the rules of the game, the goal could therefore go down as a Verbruggen own goal, which would rule out Fernandes’ record-breaking assist.

Simply put: no.

It was initially awarded on the pitch, and the Goal Accreditation Panel (which is made up of former players and a referee) decided to make no change.

However, former Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg has suggested that there is a case for the goal contribution to be removed.

"I've looked at the incident several times now, and I can understand why there’s confusion surrounding the decision to award Bruno Fernandes the assist," Clattenburg said. "From a referee’s perspective, these situations are never as straightforward as they initially appear.

"The ball clearly makes contact with the crossbar first, and after that there’s an important touch from the goalkeeper which changes the entire discussion.

"That's where the controversy begins because officials then have to determine whether the attacking phase remains unchanged or whether the goalkeeper's involvement becomes decisive enough to alter the ruling.

“If the goal were eventually to be classified differently, particularly as an own goal, Bruno Fernandes would lose the assist immediately, and naturally the record attached to it would disappear as well.

"That's the reality of elite football. Records, statistics, and historic moments can sometimes depend on the smallest deflection or the finest interpretation of a single phase of play.”