Ref Watch: 'Spurs extremely unlucky not to win penalty at Fulham'

Ex-Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher assesses the controversial moments from the weekend’s action, including Spurs’ penalty shout at Fulham and a potential handball in the Carabao Cup final.

Fulham 2-0 Tottenham

INCIDENT: With Tottenham 1-0 down against Fulham, they had a great shout for a penalty. Lucas Bergvall went down in the box after being challenged by Calvin Bassey. VAR said Bergvall kicked into Bassey.

DERMOT SAYS: “When I saw the first angle, I didn’t think it was a penalty. I thought Bergvall had gone into the back of Bassey.

“But when I look at the second angle, Bassey is extremely lucky. Bergvall gets the ball, Bassey doesn’t. You have to get the ball in that situation. On the second angle, I do think it’s a penalty.

“I heard the VAR, they felt Bergvall had gone into the back of Bassey, but Bergvall got the ball.

“Seeing that, I think it’s a penalty. What’s interesting is with the handball between Everton and Man City years ago, they concentrated so much on an angle that wasn’t conclusive. But there was one angle that was.

“When I first saw it live and the second angle, I wasn’t convinced [this one was a penalty]. But when I saw the other angle, I can see Bergvall gets the ball. And that’s conclusive.

“The first two angles, you can dismiss, because they don’t give conclusive evidence.”

INCIDENT: Spurs defender Djed Spence clearly pushed Fulham’s Raul Jimenez with two hands in the back but no penalty was given.

DERMOT SAYS: “He puts two hands in the back, how much contact there is? I don’t know.

“But is there enough contact for him to go flying like that? I would suggest no. That didn’t help his cause. The referee said no, I don’t think the VAR is ever going to go against him.

“Spence is lucky because if you give a referee a choice to make, don’t be disappointed if he goes against you. If the referee gives a penalty there, Spence couldn’t argue.”

Liverpool 1-2 Newcastle

INCIDENT: There was a handball shout on Kieran Trippier in the penalty area in the Carabao Cup final. VAR checked the incident and stuck with the on-field decision of no penalty.

DERMOT SAYS: “Not handball for me. As regards to Europe, Newcastle know all about penalties in Europe having been knocked out last year [when Paris Saint-Germain were awarded a contentious penalty for handball].

“Trippier is running, it’s his running motion. It strikes, no doubt about that. But that’s all it does, it strikes him.

“If at the end of the game, you can’t remember the incident, that tells the story.”

STEPHEN WARNOCK SAYS: “It didn’t really even stick out in my mind that would be even looked at as a potential penalty.”

SUE SMITH SAYS: “If that’s given, it would’ve been so harsh.”

INCIDENT: Newcastle had a goal ruled out just before their second goal. Alexander Isak scored, but his effort was ruled out for a subjective offside against Bruno Guimaraes, who was in the way of goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher.

DERMOT SAYS: “If you watch sideways on, Kelleher has to go around Guimaraes.

“I have a theory: if a player is so close to that goalkeeper in the six-yard area, he has to be in the goalkeeper’s vision. Kelleher has to go round him. By going round him, he loses all sight.

“He does make the save, but can he make a cleaner save? We’ll never know. But I think he’s in his line of vision.”

Arsenal 1-0 Chelsea

INCIDENT: The ball hit Marc Cucurella’s arm in the box early in the game between Arsenal and Chelsea. The Spaniard thought he was fouled by Jurrien Timber but the referee let play go on, and Arsenal missed several chances from the same attack.

DERMOT SAYS: “Play on. It’s high up, his arms are tucked in. The forward [Timber] is a clue, he also doesn’t think it’s handball, he’s the closest person to it.

“I don’t think he handles the ball. Quite right to play on.”

INCIDENT: Wesley Fofana challenged Declan Rice, following up by standing on Rice while the Arsenal midfielder was on the floor. The VAR said this didn’t cross the threshold for violent conduct.

DERMOT SAYS: “Fofana was really, really lucky throughout the game. It wasn’t just this, he committed a number of offences.

“Ironically he got yellow carded later in the game for delaying the restart.

“I don’t think this was a red card, but it was a yellow card. And if he gets a yellow card, it may stop him committing the number of fouls and offences afterwards.”

INCIDENT: Arsenal fans may wonder how Fofana stayed on the pitch. No card for the Rice challenge and no cards for two challenges on Leandro Trossard.

He did eventually get booked for delaying a restart but is there an argument that could have easily been a second yellow?

DERMOT SAYS: “The second one is a yellow card for Fofana in its own right [but he was not booked].

“If he’s not going to give a yellow card for the Rice one, you pull him out and tell him: that’s your last one. When he commits the next one, you say: what do you expect?”

Man City 2-2 Brighton

INCIDENT: Brighton saw an early goal at Manchester City ruled out when Kaoru Mitoma was accused of heading the ball out of City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega’s hands.

DERMOT SAYS: “Once the keeper has both hands on the ball, he is deemed in possession and you can’t challenge him.

“Ortega clearly has both hands on the ball. It is a split second and in fairness to Mitoma, he has to go for that ball because when he does, Ortega doesn’t have control of it.

“So he has to go for it, that’s his job. He accepts it straight away, he says it’s a foul. People have to challenge for balls.

“Would it have been disallowed for handball against Mitoma anyhow?”

Everton 1-1 West Ham

INCIDENT: Darren Bond awarded Everton a penalty at the end of the first half, he thought Konstantinos Mavropanos had fouled Beto but soon changed his mind when he saw it again at the monitor.

DERMOT SAYS: “A number of issues: clearly not a penalty as Beto kicks the ground and not Mavropanos. Not a penalty.

“VAR intervened very, very quickly. He took a look at the screen once and said no.

“Mavropanos was never fearful that was going to be a penalty.”