Keith Hackett was left gobsmacked by Elliot Anderson’s controversial disallowed goal. Midway through the second half, Newcastle United thought they had taken the lead when the Whitley Bay youngster headed home.
Nobody inside the ground appeared to signal for offside but, before play resumed, VAR intervened. Paul Tierney was summoned to the pitchside monitor and persuaded to punish Newcastle for an offside.
While Sean Longstaff had strayed in an illegal position during the build-up, Forest defender Felipe had cleared Alexander Isak's cross directly into his path. The Toon midfielder did not even touch the ball before Anderson scored but the referee still chalked off the goal.
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Thankfully for Eddie Howe and his team, the Magpies snatched a win with a stoppage-time penalty. Isak showed nerves of steel to dispatch from the spot - and quash heated post-match discussions about the disallowed goal.
However, former Premier League referee Hackett refused to let the incident slide, insisting Anderson was robbed of his first Newcastle goal. The ex-PGMOL chief also urged the powers that be to change the rules to prevent a future mishap.
“The goal should have been allowed,” Hackett tweeted. “The Forest defender made a deliberate play for the ball. Therefore the Newcastle player was not offside. Gary Neville is spot on with his analysis of the Newcastle goal that should not have been ruled out.
“The defender made a deliberate play. Deliberate play by the Forest player, how can they rule that goal out? They need to revisit the law.”
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