Wolverhampton Wanderers demand an explanation from the English Football Association after last Saturday’s FA Cup game with Liverpool (2-2). The club feels robbed after a goal was rejected in the final phase due to offside, but the images showed little of a possible offside situation.
Toti Gomes thought he would make it 2-3 in the 83rd minute, but the linesman raised his flag and the goal was cancelled. The VAR had to look at the offside case for a long time, but came to the same conclusion as the assistant referee. The cameras couldn’t prove the arbitration wrong. However, none of the TV angles showed that Wolves player Matheus Nunes was offside.
Mohamed Salah’s 2-1 also caused discussion. Toti got his head against the ball, but via the Portuguese the ball still fell at Salah’s feet. The star player remained calm and placed the ball in the left corner: 2-1. The replay showed that Toti’s conscious ball contact had come in handy, otherwise it would have been offside.
Julen Lopetegui was furious with the post-match arbitration, calling it an “impossible” and “wrong” decision. The trainer of the wolves has now revealed that the club has written to the FA about the incident and is awaiting a statement from the governing body. “Of course I have seen the images on the internet. I have my opinion, we have sent our complaint to the FA and we are waiting for an explanation. I gave my opinion after the game and now we have sent our complaint, but it is very clear that something has happened,” said Lopetegui during his last press conference.
Had the goal been approved, Wolves would in all likelihood have progressed to the next round of the FA Cup. Interestingly, Liverpool coach Jürgen Klopp also admitted that he thought the goal would be valid and was surprised when it was disallowed. With the draw the wolves forced a replay against Liverpool, which will visit Wolverhampton on Tuesday 17 January.