Premier League release statement after ‘mammoth’ controversy in West Ham vs Arsenal
Premier League Match Centre has been forced to explain why West Ham United had a last-minute goal disallowed against Arsenal.
The London Stadium witnessed one of the biggest games of the season, with West Ham in need of a win to boost their chances of survival, while the Gunners were in need of a win to move closer to the Premier League title.
On this occasion, it was Arsenal who took all three points, with Leandro Trossard scoring the only goal of the game in a 1-0 win.
However, it was almost a very different outcome, with Callum Wilson having fired home a 96th-minute equaliser, or so he thought.
After a VAR review, West Ham’s goal was ruled out, much to the frustration of the majority inside the London Stadium.
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Why was West Ham’s goal ruled out?
West Ham fans went wild when Chris Kavanagh pointed towards the centre circle, gesturing that the goal had been given.
Wilson wheeled away in celebration while the Gunners were fast to claim a free kick, and their prayers were answered.
Pablo was penalised for a foul on David Raya, which was only highlighted upon a VAR review, with the Premier League forced to release a statement on the incident described as “mammoth” by Peter Drury on commentary.
It reads: “After VAR review, the referee overturned the original decision of goal to West Ham United. Referee announcement: “After review, West Ham number 19 commits a foul on the goalkeeper. Final decision is a direct free kick.”
How does Arsenal defeat impact West Ham relegation chances?
Tottenham fans will have jumped for joy when the full-time whistle went at the London Stadium, and that is because it has placed them in the driving seat for Premier League survival.
If they can secure victory against Leeds, who had their own survival confirmed, it will see them move four points above West Ham with two games to go.
And that is reflected by Opta’s latest relegation prediction, with West Ham now given an 87.65 per cent chance of going down.
Spurs have a 12.35 per cent chance of relegation, which is likely to shift significantly on Monday night depending on their result against Leeds.