Reaction to Joao Pedro's penalty against Arsenal was unanimous on Match of the Day as Gary Lineker and his pundit panel expressed shock at the award.
The Brighton striker secured a 1-1 draw from the spot on Saturday night after being felled by an unintentional headbutt from William Saliba. Referee Anthony Taylor pointed to the spot, and VAR confirmed the decision.
It saw the Gunners yet again drop points in the title race and prompted an angry reaction from Mikel Arteta, who described the ruling as "bizarre" before adding: "(It's) a decision that is very, very disappointing.
"I've never seen a decision like this in my career. I asked the boys if they have, and nobody has seen it before."
Joao Pedro converts from the spot to equalise against Arsenal! 🎯 pic.twitter.com/dbI6H0E9dv
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 4, 2025
Discussing the incident on BBC's Match of the Day, Lineker said: "I think Mikel Arteta is absolutely spot on – it [the ball] was clearly headed by Saliba.”
Pundit Micah Richards replied: “I can understand why people think it’s a penalty – I don’t think it’s a penalty, because he heads the ball as well and you’ll see it clearly on the third angle here.
“As the ball comes in, you can clearly see that Saliba heads the ball, so I don’t think that is a penalty.”
Pundit Danny Murphy added: “I don’t think it’s a penalty, they both head the ball before they clash, they’re both genuinely going for it, it’s a coming together.
“The other thing is, why now? We’ve never seen it before.”
Lineker concluded: “Never ever have we seen penalties given for head clashes.
“I’ve watched football for far too long and I’ve never seen a penalty given for a clash of heads, it happens in every corner almost.”
