Manchester United beat Aston Villa 2-0 on the final day of the season to deny the West Midlands club Champions League football next season
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Aston Villa manager Unai Emery speaks to referee Thomas Bramall after losing to Manchester United
Aston Villa manager Unai Emery speaks to referee Thomas Bramall after losing to Manchester United
(Image: PA)
Aston Villa are set to launch an official complaint to the Premier League after Morgan Rogers was denied a goal against Manchester United due to a mistake by referee Thomas Bramall.
With the scores tied at 0-0 in the second half, Villa felt they had taken the lead when Rogers pipped Altay Bayindir to the ball and tapped home into an empty net. However, before the winger could score, Bramall had already blown his whistle to stop play.
His belief was that Bayindir had two hands on the ball when Rogers nipped in. However, replays showed that this was not the case and VAR would have overruled the decision.
The issue is that, under Premier League rules, the VAR cannot check the decision because Bramall had already halted proceedings. Therefore, the fould stood.
Moments later, Amad gave United the lead against Villa with Christian Eriksen wrapping up the points from the penalty spot in his final appearance for the club. The tough pill for Villa to swallow was that a draw would have been enough to gain Champions League football as Newcastle lost at home to Everton.
Now, Unai Emery's side will have to settle for Europa League football next season. According to The Athletic, Villa will be launching a formal complaint to the Premier League over Bramall's appointment for the match.
They insist that, due to the important nature of the fixture, a referee with more experience should have been on the touchline for the game. Bramall has refereed 11 Premier League fixtures this season including United's clash with Leicester City in March and Villa's battle with Southampton in April.
He also made ten appearances as referee in the Championship this campaign and was also the referee for one fifth tier match in the National League between Gateshead and Solihull Moors. Last season, Bramall made 11 appearances in the Premier League and 11 in the Championship as a referee.
Speaking to the media after the game, Emery explained his conversation with Bramall and his reaction to the incident. "The TV (evidence) is clear but, of course, we have to accept it. It is a big mistake," he explained.
Morgan Rogers thought he opened the scoring at Old Trafford
Morgan Rogers thought he opened the scoring at Old Trafford
"The goal (being) disallowed was the key moment but overall they deserve it more. We were resilient with one player less and we could score one goal.
"It was a good opportunity to continue being resilient and keep the result. I speak to the referee and he knows it (was a mistake).
"But I don't want to speak about VAR. We go to Europa League but we were close to Champions League.
"Our objective (at the start of the season) was to be in Europe, and we have to be happy and proud with what we did."
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