Tony Brown shocked by West Brom incident v Southampton – ‘I can’t believe that’
Tony Brown was left shocked by the decision to award West Brom a throw-in after a controversial incident involving Grady Diangana against Southampton.
Carlos Corberan’s side were held to a 0-0 draw by the Saints in the first leg of their playoff semifinal at The Hawthorns on Sunday (12 May) but the Baggies had plenty of opportunities to take the lead throughout the game.
Albion felt they deserved a spot-kick in the final exchanges when Ryan Fraser hauled Diangana to the ground as he made his way into the penalty area.
However, Albion legend Brown was baffled by the referee’s decision to give the Baggies a throw-in.
Speaking on BBC West Midlands (12 May, 16:10) he said: “He’s given a throw in here.
“I can’t believe that he’s given a throw-in, in the finish there.”
Should West Brom and Grady Diangana had a penalty against Southampton?
While the contact on Diangana was fairly minimal, the Albion winger was clearly impeded by Fraser’s challenge. Whether the contact came within the box is another matter, but it should have at least been a free-kick.
No one knows just how costly that decision could be to the Baggies’ playoff campaign this term as a late penalty to take a one-goal lead into the second leg of a semi-final could well have been enough to swing things in Albion’s favour
Ultimately, Corberan’s side only have themselves to blame as they wasted a number of excellent chances and had Diangana’s finishing been better earlier in the contest, the match would have been put to bed before the controversy.
Hopefully, that stroke of luck will be back on the Baggies’ side by the time West Brom make the trip to St Mary’s. If they can sort things out in the final third, they have the ability to beat anybody that they will face in the playoffs.
In other West Brom news, Karlan Grant sent a new message to the Baggies ahead of their playoff campaign
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