West Ham’s captain Jarrod Bowen and manager Nuno Espirito Santo have expressed their frustrations with the officiating after a last-minute goal against Arsenal was disallowed, questioning the consistency of the referees and suggesting that the Premier League needs to embrace a more “physical” style of play.
Currently, West Ham finds themselves in a precarious position near the relegation zone, while Arsenal is closing in on the league title after a thrilling clash at the London Stadium, which ended in a 1-0 victory for the visitors.
The drama unfolded late in the match when Callum Wilson seemingly scored an equalizer for West Ham, only for it to be disallowed after an extensive review by VAR Darren England and referee Chris Kavanagh.
The goal was dismissed due to a foul on David Raya by West Ham forward Pablo, who appeared to hold the goalkeeper’s arm during Bowen’s corner kick.
“When you watch the replay for five minutes, you’ll inevitably find something — there’s a lot of grappling and holding. If you scrutinize any play long enough, you’ll uncover something,” Bowen told the BBC.
“Do I agree with the decision? No. Where’s the consistency? As a fan, it’s disheartening to celebrate a goal only to have it revoked minutes later. Corners are inherently physical. The Premier League is physical; that’s part of its appeal. You have to expect some contact during corner kicks. If you’re going to call that, then you must call every instance of holding, and that’s not the direction fans want the game to take.”
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta praised the referee for his “brave” decision, insisting it was justified, a point Bowen challenged. He added in his comments to Sky Sports: “Goalkeepers are afforded more protection than outfield players — there’s always holding and grappling in the box. Are we expected to scrutinize those incidents each time and give penalties? That seems to be the only consistent way to handle it. I understand you can’t take a goalkeeper out, and yes, there’s some physicality involved, but when a keeper comes out for the ball, they should anticipate some contact. It’s a corner; it’s the Premier League — contact is inevitable.”
Bowen expressed his discontent, “We feel particularly aggrieved, especially after last week’s match against Brentford when [Tomas] Soucek was pulled down and we weren’t awarded a penalty. I’m not trying to sound bitter; I’m just being truthful. If you look at decisions long enough, you’ll find grounds for them, and that appears to be what happened here.” He added, “Arsenal are a prime example of a team that excels with set pieces — they’re physical and they aim to challenge the goalkeeper. If we examine games over the season, we could point to countless instances of goalkeepers being impeded without any decisions being made in their favor. If a foul is given, it must be consistent week in and week out.”
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West Ham now faces a difficult task in their fight to remain in the Premier League, currently sitting just a point behind Tottenham, who have a game in hand against Leeds on Monday.
Nuno also voiced his dissatisfaction regarding the inconsistency, remarking that referees “often misinterpret what constitutes a foul” and tend to “confuse themselves.” He stated, “Given the way the match concluded, we are all disheartened. There’s always a referee and VAR involved, and past decisions have been judged in varied ways. This isn’t an isolated incident, but rather a growing pattern.” He added, “The inconsistency is troubling. Players are left confused and frustrated; they don’t understand the rationale behind the calls. It’s crucial that the league addresses this issue, as referees seem to be in a constant state of confusion.”
This report contains information from PA.