Regis Le Bris' high-flying Sunderland managed to nick all three points in the dying embers of their Saturday afternoon encounter with Chelsea as Chemsdine Talbi grabbed the match-winner in the 93rd minute. Former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA referee Keith Hackett, however, has suggested that Sunderland's last-gasp goal should've been chalked off.
The west Londoners started the brighter of the two sides at Stamford Bridge with Alejandro Garancho scoring within four minutes. Sunderland then bagged an equaliser 18 minutes later as Wilson Isidor pounced on the chaos in the Chelsea box to prod home past Robert Sanchez. The Blues then struggled to convert their chances.
In dramatic fashion, the Black Cats – who now sit second, behind only Arsenal, in the Premier League table – sent the away fans into pandemonium in added time as Talbi met Brian Brobbey's pass with a sweet, curling finish into the bottom right-hand corner. Hackett, however, was not convinced of the goal's legality, and he has explained why.
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Ex-PGMOL Chief Hackett Claims Sunderland's Winner Shouldn't Have Stood
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A collective roar from the travelling contingent bellowed around Stamford Bridge as the net rippled and Talbi ran over to the fans in celebration. Those of a Chelsea persuasion, however, felt hard done by due to Lutsharel Geertruida's potentially blocking the view of Blues stopper Sanchez as the ball was guided into the bottom corner.
Brobbey – who replaced goalscorer Isidor in the 75th minute – had no issues in holding off Tosin Adarabioyo as he awaited runners into Chelsea's box. Geertruida, who had played the initial long ball to his teammate and compatriot, busted a gut to offer an option in the middle of the box.
He was bypassed, however, and Brobbey expertly picked out a pass to Talbi, who was arriving into the box unmarked. The 20-year-old Moroccan slotted home coolly – but eyebrows were raised over the position of Geertruida, who was being followed and marked by Chelsea skipper Reece James.
Geertruida, who signed on loan from RB Leipzig in the summer, blocked Sanchez's view of the shot and was in an offside position when Isidor took his chance, but VAR did check it and deemed the Dutchman not to be interfering with play.
In his assessment of the controversial incident, Hackett suggested that Geertruida was interfering with Sanchez's line of vision – and, as a result, the goal should not have stood. "There are questions and doubts about that winning goal scored by Sunderland vs Chelsea today. The question is around Law 11 Offside and whether the player who was clearly standing in an offside position was interfering with an opponent," he said.
"For me, he was in the sightline of the goalkeeper who made little effort to dive to his left to save the ball, which went in the bottom right corner of the goal. For me, I'm flagging that offside. As the referee, I'm disallowing the goal."
All the controversy aside, Sunderland's win – their first away to Chelsea since 2014 – has seen them leapfrog a quintet of teams, including Manchester City, into second place in the table. They've accrued 17 points from nine matches, while Maresca and his men are sat in eighth after suffering three losses in their last five league outings.
Up next for the Blues, they travel to Molineux to face Wolverhampton Wanderers in the League Cup before welcoming Tottenham Hotspur to Stamford Bridge next weekend. For Sunderland, they play host to David Moyes' Everton next Monday before Mikel Arteta's Arsenal travel to the Stadium of Light in their toughest test to date.