Pundit Leon Osman has described Brighton’s disallowed free-kick goal against West Brom as a “complete mess”.
Sam Allardyce claimed his first home victory as manager of the Baggies on Saturday afternoon, with Albion beating Brighton 1-0 at the Hawthorns.
Kyle Bartley’s first half goal separated the two sides, although the result was marred by a controversial Brighton goal being disallowed.
Brighton had a free-kick on the edge of the box, and after Lee Mason blew his whistle Lewis Dunk quickly struck the ball past Sam Johnstone.
However Mason blew his whistle a second time, in-between Dunk striking the ball and the ball crossing the goal-line, with Johnstone having not been ready.
Mason initially ruled out the free-kick, then gave the goal after some consideration, before using VAR to overrule his overrule and ultimately deny Brighton their equaliser.
Talking about the situation on BBC Radio 5 Live, Osman mocked the messy situation, saying: “It is pure confusion. Lee Mason himself didn’t seem to know what decision he should give.
“He knew he was at fault in some way. It was a complete mess.”
Farcical decision
Though we benefitting from the free-kick being disallowed, it’s clear that Brighton were robbed of a goal at the very least.
The Premier League’s refereeing standards have come under fire many times this season and Mason’s failure to uphold the rules of the game will prove to be just the latest situation where fans, pundits and pros are all left scratching their heads.
Albion must be thankful for the mistake and the three points are happily taken, but some sympathy should go Brighton’s way because it just isn’t the way teams should be losing games.
Whenever referees make a mess or get things wrong, it’s always the clubs and the fans that end up paying for it.