REUTERS/Scott Heppell
There was high drama to start the Premier League for Newcastle United and Liverpool. The game ended 2-2, with Andoni Iraola's men netting a controversial late penalty to grab a point.
New Magpies manager Matthias Jaissle got off to a fine start when Anthony Elanga raced through on goal to score after just five minutes. And when Cody Gakpo levelled the scores in the second half, Joe Willock was able to restore his team's lead just two minutes later.
It looked as though Newcastle would be going home with all three points, but a late penalty allowed Dominik Szoboszlai the chance to rescue a point. Stepping up in the 99th minute, the Liverpool midfielder made no mistake from 12 yards as the game ended 2-2.
Ronald Araujo chasing after Yoane Wissa
Ronald Araujo chasing after Yoane Wissa
Keith Hackett Gives Verdict on Lewis Hall Foul
Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith
Whenever a penalty is given at such a late stage of the game, it's always bound to spark a bit of a debate. This injury time foul was no exception. Victor Munoz went down in the box under a challenge from Lewis Hall and Stuart Attwell pointed to the spot.
VAR felt that there was no obvious mistake, so the on-field decision stood. Speaking after the game, Newcastle boss Jaissle was not happy with the call, saying:
“For me, it was no penalty - it was a really soft one. If you give that, we will see many, many penalties. I don't think that Lewis can do anything else, he cannot just disappear on the field! It’s a really soft penalty. If you give these penalties then you have to give a lot in this season and I’m not sure if that’s good for football.”
However, former Premier League referee and PGMOL head Keith Hackett has weighed in on the debate. The retired official was asked on social media what he thought of the call and made his feelings clear with a two-word verdict:
Gary Neville and Other Pundits Also Offer Thoughts on Liverpool Penalty
Hackett wasn't the only one who felt as though the officials got the decision correct. Indeed, Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville also leaned in that direction when discussing the incident.
As he watched replays back, he stated: “Hall has been incredible but that is not going to be overturned. There was no touch on the ball… I think Hall knows deep inside that it was a penalty.”
Adding to this, Micah Richards and Daniel Sturridge both agreed with Atwell. Richards claimed that Hall was 'unlucky' but noted that there was enough contact to bring down the Liverpool attacker: "Yes it's harsh, a lot of people will be saying this is not a penalty, but he catches his knee.
Sturridge confirmed that it was "knee on knee", concluding that Munoz was always going to go down upon that sort of contact in the box.