The Premier League has explained why Anthony Gordon’s goal for Newcastle against Tottenham was allowed after a lengthy VAR check.
The ball hit Joelinton’s arm in the build-up to the goal after Lucas Bergvall attempted to pass to Pedro Porro, only to be intercepted by the Brazilian.
Bruno Guimaraes then passed the ball to Gordon who fired an effort past debutant Brandon Austin in the Spurs goal, canceling out Dominic Solanke’s opener.
Many inside the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, including Ally McCoist in commentary for TNT Sports, expected the goal to be ruled out for handball, only for referee Andy Madley to point towards the center circle to score a goal.
Ange Postecoglou erupted on the touchline, partly due to the decision to award the goal but also botched passes from Bergvall and Pape Matar Sarr to turn the ball over.
The league’s Match Center has since explained why the goal was awarded, releasing a statement which read: “The referee’s goal call was upheld by VAR, who verified a potential handball by Joelinton during preparation and felt that his arm was on his side, in a natural position and the contact was accidental.
Dan Burn then found himself lucky not to receive a second yellow card in the opening minutes, after handling the ball to stop a Spurs counter.
Madley exploded for a foul but chose not to brandish another warning, despite the Spurs team’s clamor to send Burn off.
-All of this chaos happened in the first 25 minutes which started with Solanke passing the ball past Martin Dubravka as New England head coach Thomas Tuchel looked on.
The striker’s clever run eluded Sven Botman, on his first start of the season, before finding the bottom corner with an emphatic headed effort.
Gordon then took his chance to impress Tuchel by shooting past Austin, making his league debut for Spurs, in the absence of Guglielmo Vicario and Fraser Forster.
Postecoglou’s team has since moved to address concerns between the two positions. They are expected to welcome 21-year-old goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky in a £12.5 million move from Slavia Prague this month.
The hosts’ misery was compounded when Alexander Isak got the finishing touch from a Jacob Murphy cross and headed past Austin to take the lead before half-time.
Belgium
