Howard Webb admits Fulham’s disallowed goal against Chelsea was a “misjudgement”

• PGMOL chief Howard Webb said Josh King’s ruled-out strike against Chelsea “wasn’t controversial, it was wrong.”
• He explained VAR officials became “super focused” on contact between Rodrigo Muniz and Trevoh Chalobah, without considering the wider context.
• Fulham boss Marco Silva called the decision “unbelievable” as Chelsea went on to win 2-0 in a game filled with VAR controversy.

Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) chief Howard Webb has admitted that the decision to disallow Josh King’s goal for Fulham in their 2-0 defeat at Chelsea was a “misjudgement.”

King, 18, had the ball in the net after 22 minutes at Stamford Bridge, but following a lengthy VAR review the effort was cancelled out due to a foul in the build-up. Rodrigo Muniz was judged to have stepped on the foot of Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah while trying to turn him near the halfway line.

Fulham manager Marco Silva was furious, describing the ruling as “unbelievable,” and the sense of injustice deepened when Chelsea later benefitted from another VAR call. Joao Pedro’s header opened the scoring before Enzo Fernandez doubled the lead from the penalty spot, a decision that again went against the visitors.

After the match, Michael Salisbury, who acted as VAR official for the game, was removed from duty for Liverpool’s clash with Arsenal the following day.

Speaking on Match Officials Mic’d Up, the television programme that reviews controversial calls, Webb did not shy away from acknowledging the mistake. “It wasn’t controversial, it was wrong,” Webb said. “We’ve established some principles in terms of how we officiate in the Premier League and how we use VAR. They sit around a high threshold for penalising contact, aiding the flow, rhythm and tempo of the game. We’ve also established a high bar for intervention with VAR.”

Webb stressed that goals should only be overturned when there is clear evidence to do so. “Officials should only be taking goals away when the evidence is very clear and that was the guidance we provide for officials,” he said. “In this situation, that guidance wasn’t followed properly. There was a misjudgement by the officials involved in this situation about how that contact happened between Muniz and Chalobah. The officials got super focused on that contact, without looking at the full context of how it happened.”

The controversy marked the second consecutive home game in which Chelsea benefitted from a significant VAR intervention. On the opening weekend, Eberechi Eze’s free-kick for Crystal Palace was ruled out because Marc Guehi was deemed to have interfered with the wall.

The debate around VAR has continued to escalate, with Burnley manager Scott Parker warning that decisions risk turning football into “the most sterile game there is.”

Webb defended the technology, insisting that officials are committed to maintaining a high threshold for its use. “We’ve done really well in the last 18 months or so to reduce our involvement, with respect to the referee’s call,” he explained. “We’ve seen less interventions in the Premier League than any other major league in Europe, so we need to continue doing that. We understand the importance of these decisions. We understand that if we get it wrong like we did on this occasion the impact is significant – and we’re always, always striving to do better.”