Credit: Imago

Oliver Walton

Thu 5 March 2026 12:41, UK

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Brighton and Hove Albion should have been awarded a penalty against Arsenal on Wednesday night after Gabriel Martinelli’s pull on Mats Wieffer was missed by the match officials.

Former PGMOL chief and FIFA referee Keith Hackett has told Football Insider that the Arsenal forward clearly fouled his opponent and a spot-kick should have been awarded to the Seagulls.

Arsenal took another step towards winning the Premier League title on Wednesday with a 1-0 win over Brighton at the Amex Stadium.

Bukayo Saka grabbed the game’s only goal in the ninth minute, as Seagulls keeper Bart Verbruggen failed to keep out his tame effort from the edge of the area.

Arsenal allowed Brighton to dominate possession and have the better chances, but still came away with the victory, even though the hosts felt they should have had a penalty on the stroke of half-time.

Keith Hackett blasts Chris Kavanagh and VAR for failing to award Brighton a penalty

Martinelli bundled Wieffer over in the Arsenal box in the 48th minute, just as the hosts looked to whip a cross in from the left flank.

It was an off-the-ball challenge that was not seen by referee Kavanagh, and VAR did check for a penalty, but decided not to recommend an on-field review as “there was no clear and obvious error” made by the officials, according to the PL Match Centre.

Former PGMOL chief Hackett has insisted that a spot-kick should have been given to the hosts, while Kavanagh and VAR official Michael Salisbury may need further training to know what constitutes a holding offence.

Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, he said: “Another clear holding offence inside the penalty area that is (missed) completely by the match officials.

“They need to be retrained to understand what a holding offence is. They can use this clip as a training video.

“What is happening to the standard and consistency of law application by our match officials? I would suggest that they are confused.”

Saka proved his worth with winner vs Brighton following new contract

Saka’s winner came about in fortunate circumstances, but the fact that he was the one to step up and score such a vital goal speaks volumes to his importance to the Gunners right now.

He has had some doubters in recent times, mainly due to a lack of output this season, with Wednesday’s strike being his sixth Premier League strike in 26 appearances so far.

They were proven wrong on Wednesday, however, as the England winger was the only Arsenal player to find the net to send his side seven points clear of Man City.

Sources have told Football Insider that Saka’s new contract could cause Arsenal problems, as his teammates may want bigger deals, but that is clearly a risk their board were willing to take to make sure that he is tied down for the long term.