Exclusive: Brighton goal ‘wrongly disallowed’ v Man United after ‘accident’
Brighton star Joao Pedro saw his goal v Man United wrongly disallowed after an “accidental” collision in the build-up, Keith Hackett has claimed.
The former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA official has insisted that Brighton and Pedro “have every right to feel aggrieved” after their goal was chalked off, although the decision ultimately had little impact on the end result at Old Trafford.
Fabian Hurzeler’s side ran out as 3-1 winners thanks to goals from Yankuba Minteh, Kaoru Mitoma and Georginio Rutter, while United’s goal came courtesy of a Bruno Fernandes penalty.
Hackett went on to explain that he understands why the goal was not given, and empathised with referee Peter Bankes after a “difficult” and “subjective” decision.
Keith Hackett explains Joao Pedro disallowed goal after “accident” in Brighton v Man United
It was an impressive win for the Seagulls on the road which moved them up to ninth place and saw United drop to 13th, behind Crystal Palace.
Ruben Amorim’s side have now won just one of their last six games in the Premier League, via a late 3-1 win against Southampton at home.
This led the boss to label his side “the worst in Man United history” in a highly critical assessment of the situation he and the club have found themselves in.
However, Brighton’s victory could have been even more comfortable on the day had Pedro’s goal been allowed, with many United fans suggesting they had got away lightly from the incident.
Following the scuffed delivery of a free-kick into the box, there was a scramble of players failing to clear the ball, before Diogo Dalot knocked the ball up in the air, and it fell to Pedro who fired home.
However, upon a VAR review of the incident, the Brighton attacker was shown to have made contact with Dalot’s foot during his clearance, and the goal was disallowed.
Hackett explained that the contact on the Man United man was “an accident” and therefore should not have been disallowed, although he accepted “it could have gone either way.”
“Brighton have every right to feel aggrieved,” he told Football Insider.
“Having seen another view of the incident, I do not see any reason to disallow the goal.
“I think the contact on the Man United player was an accident and the goal was good.
“This is one of those decisions which is subjective and could have gone either way.
“It demonstrates how some decisions are difficult to make.”
In other news, Man United face FA punishment after incident v Brighton.
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