Manchester City enjoyed a routine 2-0 home victory over Wolves - but Pep Guardiola was left seething by one penalty call in that match.
Bernardo Silva reacts to a decision given by referee Farai Hallam.
The referee who oversaw Man City's win over Wolves will NOT be in charge of any matches this weekend. (Image: Carl Recine, Getty Images)
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Premier League official Farai Hallam will not be involved in any top-flight fixtures at the weekend after he took charge of Manchester City's victory over Wolves - where he irked Pep Guardiola.
Hallam, 32, oversaw City's 2-0 win over the rock-bottom side, which saw Omar Marmoush and Antoine Semenyo both score in the first half. While there was little difficulty for the Blues, the contest still brought about one of the most controversial referee decisions of the weekend.
Hallam was instructed to review an incident after Marmoush flicked the ball on to the arm of Yerson Mosquera. Despite viewing the replay, the official maintained his initial verdict of no penalty, in a rare example of an official sticking with their on-field decision even after being told to take another look by VAR.
Hallam, before the 53,000-strong crowd, stated: "After review, the ball hits the arm of the Wolves player, which is in a natural position, so the on-field decision will remain."
It had minimal impact on the outcome, but Guardiola remained incensed at being refused a penalty. This weekend, Hallam not been listed as an assistant, fourth official, VAR or assistant VAR official in any of the matches.
It's unlikely this is as a result of the controversial decision - as the PGMOL tend not to deploy a new referee in the round of fixtures following their Premier League debut. For example, referee Tom Kirk had to wait one month after his debut to take charge of his second Premier League match.
Yerson Mosquera goes up for the ball along with Omar Marmoush.
The ball struck Mosquera's arm, but Hallam decided his arm was in a natural position.(Image: 2026 Marc Atkins)
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Despite it being his first outing at the top level, Guardiola was not in the mood to go easy on Hallam. In his post-match media duties, he said: "The player's arm is out from his body.
"The ref made a huge debut... so now everyone will know him, but it's okay. It's the first time they go to a TV and disallowed what is a 'normal' position of the arms."
He also took aim at PGMOL chief Howard Webb, adding: "I'm waiting for a phone call to explain why it wasn't a penalty."
Pep Guardiola the head coach / manager of Manchester City speaks with Referee Farai Hallam after the Premier League match between Manchester City and Wolverhampton Wanderers at Etihad Stadium on January 24, 2026 in Manchester, England
Guardiola was incensed with the decision(Image: 2026 Marc Atkins)
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It proved a crucial result for Guardiola's side, given Arsenal's 3-2 away defeat to Manchester United. City moved to within four points of the Premier League leaders with 15 matches remaining.
The victory also brought an end to City's run of four Premier League matches without a win, which saw them draw with Sunderland, Chelsea and Brighton and Hove Albion, before their derby loss to United the previous week.
They welcome Galatasaray in an important Champions League match at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday night, before travelling to Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League and meeting Newcastle United in the second-leg of their League Cup semi-final.