Premier League release statement after contentious Newcastle goal allowed to stand against Tottenham
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Newcastle United's controversial equaliser against Tottenham was allowed to stand following a VAR review, despite the ball appearing to strike Joelinton's hand in the build-up to Anthony Gordon's goal.
The incident occurred just minutes after Dominic Solanke had put Spurs ahead in the early exchanges of the match.
Gordon's strike sparked immediate protests from the Tottenham players, who were convinced the goal should have been disallowed for handball.
The decision went to a lengthy VAR check at Stockley Park, with officials ultimately backing referee Andrew Madley's on-field decision to award the goal.
Anthony Gordon scored to make it 1-1 for Newcastle
Reuters
The Premier League's Match Centre issued a statement explaining their decision to allow the goal.
"The referee's call of goal was confirmed by VAR, who checked for a potential handball by Joelinton in the build-up and deemed that his arm was by his side, in a natural position and the contact was accidental," the statement read.
Officials at Stockley Park determined that because Joelinton's handball was not deliberate and his arm was in a natural position, the goal should stand.
The decision was further supported by the fact that the handball did not lead immediately to the goal.
The controversial moment unfolded when Lucas Bergvall's pass was intercepted by Joelinton, with the ball striking the Brazilian midfielder's hand.
Bruno Guimaraes collected the loose ball before setting up Anthony Gordon, who swept his shot past Brandon Austin in the Tottenham net.
The Premier League released a statement during the match
Reuters
The sequence of events sparked immediate debate, particularly as the laws around attacking handball have been a point of contention.
Notably, had Joelinton himself scored rather than Gordon, the goal would have been disallowed under current handball regulations.
The decision sparked immediate outrage on social media, with fans questioning the interpretation of handball rules.
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Tottenham were furious with the decision
Reuters
"Attacking handball rule is broken because if Joelinton was the goalscorer, it gets disallowed," wrote one user on X.
"How is that not handball?" questioned another, while a third asked: "Did they change the handball rule?"
Former Tottenham player Jamie O'Hara expressed his dismay on social media: "Wtf it's handball how can you give that as a goal it's put him in on goal what a joke."
The controversy highlighted ongoing debates about the consistency of handball decisions in the Premier League.
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