Head of referee board: 'Man Utd's penalty was misread'

Webb appeared on the showMic'd Upas usual on the evening of November 12, to comment on controversial decisions of Premier League referees in recent times. The focus was on the situation where centre-back Matthijs de Ligt fouled striker Danny Ings in the Man Utd penalty area, helping West Ham get a penalty and then score the winning goal to win 2-1 on October 27.

"VAR Michael Oliver got it wrong, despite his usual charisma and talent," Webb said. "The referees focused too much on the contact between De Ligt and Ings, and they thought it was a foul because the centre-back didn't touch the ball. VAR shouldn't have intervened, but let the game continue according to the referee David Coote's decision, whether it was a penalty or not."

Webb also provided a video of the discussion between Coote, Oliver and VAR assistant Stuart Burt about the incident. Oliver and Burt both thought West Ham deserved a penalty, so they asked the technician to show the angle they thought was the clearest. Oliver then called Coote to the touchline to review the incident, and only showed that angle.

Coote reviewed the play several times, saying it was "knee-to-knee". Oliver agreed, saying De Ligt "had absolutely no contact with the ball".

Coote still seemed to disagree, asking again "did Ings touch the ball?" Oliver agreed that Ings did not touch the ball, but the striker was bringing his knee towards the ball, while De Ligt brought his knee towards Ings' leg.

Coote asked twice more if it could be just a "knee-to-knee collision", but Oliver did not answer. Then Coote said he would award a penalty and not give further punishment. "I will", Oliver replied.

Coote, 42, has been officiating in the Premier League since 2018 and started his FIFA duties in 2020. Oliver, 39, has been officiating in the Premier League since 2010, joined FIFA in 2012 and became a UEFA senior referee in 2018. Oliver's experience and expertise are both rated higher than Coote's.

Webb, 53, officiated the 2010 World Cup final between the Netherlands and Spain. After retiring in August 2014, he became technical director and then head of the England referees board. Webb said the collision between De Ligt and Ings was only a 50-50 chance, and the referee did not need to review the incident.

The referee's wrong decision caused Man Utd to lose 1-2, and Ten Hag was also fired less than 24 hours later. New coach Ruben Amorim will take charge of the team's first match against Ipswich Town on November 24.

This is not the first time the referee has admitted to being wrong in a situation that is disadvantageous to Man Utd this season. Also in the programMic'd UpPreviously, Webb said that referee Chris Kavanagh was wrong to show a straight red card, sending off midfielder Bruno Fernandes in the match against Tottenham on September 29. Man Utd later appealed, and Fernandes escaped a three-match suspension.