Ex-Premier League referee: West Ham profit from major injustice as controversial Craig Dawson footage emerges
West Ham did not deserve a penalty in their 3-1 win over Fulham on Sunday (9 October), according to Keith Hackett.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, the ex-Fifa and Premier League referee admitted he “loved” how proactive Chris Kavanagh was but he made the wrong decision.
As shown on the BBC’s Match of the Day 2 programme, Kavanagh had warned Andreas Pereira about tangling with Craig Dawson before a corner was taken.
When the ball was eventually whipped in, Dawson fell to the ground and Kavanagh immediately pointed to the spot and showed Pereira a yellow card.
As quoted by the London Evening Standard after the game, Marco Silva claimed his player had to show more “maturity” in the situation.
“I’ll be honest, I love that he’s given the decision,” Hackett said after analysing the footage with Football Insider correspondent Connor Whitley.
“Well done to the referee for actually talking to the players and then making a decision.
“The only thing is, I don’t think it was a penalty kick. I thought that the attacker fouled the defender first.
“I think the attacker has used his arm in the face of his opponent.
“For me, it’s great that the referee has come in but it should have been a free-kick to the defending team, not a penalty kick to West Ham.
“The referee has at least done something.”
Jarrod Bowen converted from the spot to level the scores.
Goals from Gianluca Scamacca and Michail Antonio sealed the comeback victory as West Ham registered back-to-back wins for the first time in the Premier League this season.
In other news, West Ham could sack David Moyes now after a source’s Mauricio Pochettino reveal.