Keith Hackett shares ‘violent conduct’ Newcastle verdict as Joe Willock footage re-analysed
Keith Hackett has shared an emphatic verdict on a clash involving Newcastle United midfielder Joe Willock and Ipswich Town captain Sam Morsy.
The former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA official exclusively told Football Insider that VAR did not need to get involved to check the incident for violent conduct.
Ipswich saw their relegation from the Premier League officially confirmed after they were beaten 3-0 at Newcastle on Saurday (26 April).
That match was also one that provided several talking points in terms of officiating decisions that were made by referee Michael Salisbury and VAR James Bell.
Joe Willock and Sam Morsy checked by VAR
Early on in the game, Newcastle saw a goal ruled out for a contentious foul on Ipswich goalkeeper Alex Palmer.
Moments after that, as the Tractor Boys goalkeeper cleared a ball long downfield, Morsy and Willock became involved in an off-the-ball tussle in the centre of the park.
| Premier League position | Played | Points |
| 17. West Ham | 34 | 36 |
| 18. Ipswich (R) | 34 | 21 |
| 19. Leicester (R) | 34 | 18 |
| 20. Southampton (R) | 34 | 11 |
Although Salisbury elected not to intervene, VAR Bell recommended a stop in play to allow for the clash to be checked for possible violent conduct.
Ultimately though, neither the Newcastle or Ipswich player was sanctioned, and Hackett does not believe there was any need for a check in the first place.
Newcastle United vs Ipswich Town VAR check criticised
After being asked by Football Insider if he felt either player should have been punished for this collision, or if he did not feel there was any need for VAR to get involved, Hackett said:
“I don’t there’s any need for VAR to check it. I think the referee’s got that in his sight, we seem to forget that we’ve also got assistant referees that communicate if anything untoward happens off the ball…
“I think there’s an over-indulgence here: ‘I want to be right, I want to help the referee’.
“And I don’t think the referee needed it. These things happen in football. There’s some things you want to see and there’s others you don’t want to see and that’s one of them.”
Ipswich defender Ben Johnson would then be sent off after being shown two yellow cards in seven minutes to give the hosts a man-advantage.
On the stroke of half time, Newcastle went 1-0 up when Alexander Isak scored a controversially awarded penalty, before second half strikes from Dan Burn and William Osula secured the win.
While that confirms Ipswich will be back in the Championship next season, Eddie Howe‘s side are now back up to third in the Premier League table.