Exclusive: Pawson criticised over Aston Villa controversy amid Man City protests
Keith Hackett has criticised referee Craig Pawson over a crucial decision which upset Man City in their dramatic late win over Aston Villa.
The former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA official exclusively told Football Insider he does not believe VAR should have been required to award a spot kick for a challenge by Ruben Dias and Jacob Ramsey.
Tuesday night (22 April) saw the two sides clash at the Etihad in a key game in the race to qualify for the Champions League.
It was the hosts who took the lead through Bernardo Silva, who is rumoured to be Man City this summer, when Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez failed to keep out his shot in the seventh minute.
Unai Emery‘s side were however, quickly given the chance to pull themselves level on the scoreboard in that game.
Ruben Dias concedes penalty after VAR intervention
Less than ten minutes after the opener, Ramsey received a pass just inside the Man City area, before going to ground after a mistimed challenge from Dias.
Initially, referee Pawson elected not to award the penalty, although replays showed that the centre-back had impeded the Aston Villa man without making any contact on the ball.
| Ruben Dias vs Aston Villa | Total (from SofaScore) |
| Successful Passes | 67/71 |
| Duels Won | 3/4 |
| Clearances | 2 |
| Tackles | 1 |
| Fouls | 1 |
| Penalties Conceded | 1 |
As a result, after a VAR check a penalty was awarded to the visitors, which did not go down well with the home side, who had manager Pep Guardiola booked for his complaints.
Even so, Man United loanee Marcus Rashford would step up to score against Man City and level the game at 1-1.
Now Hackett has confirmed the decision to give the penalty was right, but has questioned why Pawson needed the assistance of VAR to award it in the first place, rather than immediately giving it on-field.
Craig Pawson criticised after not immediately penalising Man City
After being asked by Football Insider about that decision to award a penalty to Aston Villa after that VAR check, Hackett said:
“Correct decision to award a penalty kick despite the protests. The Manchester City player was careless in his challenge and VAR correct to intervene.
“Ramsey of Villa is in possession of the ball making a run into the opponents penalty area when Ruben Dias ran across the back of him, making contact and bringing Ramsey to the ground.
“I really thought Craig Pawson, in a good viewing position, would have given that straight away. He didn’t, he waited, VAR intervened, he had a look at the monitor [and] didn’t hesitate to award a penalty kick.
“Correct decision, I would like to see referees give it first time round rather than an over-reliance on VAR but in the end they got the correct decision.”
Man City would then go on to score a stoppage time winner through Matheus Nunes, meaning they have now climbed to third in the Premier League table.
Aston Villa meanwhile are seventh, two points adrift of a Champions League spot but having played a game more than most of their rivals for a European place.
Both teams will now turn their focus to FA Cup semi finals this weekend, with Man City facing Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa taking on Crystal Palace.