Crystal Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson was fortunate to avoid a red card in their FA Cup final win against Manchester City but Oliver Glasner didn’t care much
Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner cheekily labelled it a ‘good decision’ after Dean Henderson escaped a sending-off in the FA Cup final. Palace goalkeeper Henderson handled the ball outside of his area when City striker Erling Halaand was baring down on goal midway through the first half.
Referee Stuart Attwell didn’t spot the infringement in real time and VAR decided against a red card. Their explanation was that Haaland’s direction of travel meant that it was a ‘possible’ clear goal-scoring opportunity and not an ‘obvious’ one.
The decision sparked controversy, with pundit Wayne Rooney declaring: “Get rid of VAR.” Glasner, though, wasn’t as bothered.
After guiding Palace to their first ever major trophy win, courtesy of Eberechi Eze’s early goal, the Eagles boss told the BBC: “He was outside? Good decision.”
Presenter Gary Lineker couldn’t contain his laughter, nor could pundits Rooney, Glenn Murray and Micah Richards. Henderson, who went on to save a penalty from Omar Marmoush a mere 13 minutes later, didn’t think that he was outside of his 18-yard box when he swiped the ball away from Haaland’s foot.
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“I didn’t know [the VAR check] was for me in all honesty,” the England international admitted. “The ball had come into the box so I wasn’t sure what they were doing it for. Who cares, it doesn’t matter.”
Rooney’s reaction was among those to make headlines, as the Manchester United legend bemoaned: “It is a red card – how can they get this wrong? Just get rid of VAR. They have made a mistake and now they are trying to cover up. It is a red card and everyone can see it’s a red card.”
Should Dean Henderson have been shown a red card? Have your say in the comments section.
On ITV, ex-Palace striker Ian Wright said: “How this is not denying a goalscoring opportunity, it’s absolutely pathetic. It’s crazy, he’s going to tap that past him and then he’s just going to tap that into the goal. Why are they making up these rules and saying it so eloquently? To confuse us? That’s supposed to be a sending-off.”
Former City defender Joleon Lescott wasn’t impressed either, claiming: “That’s one of the worst decisions I’ve seen in football. Because of the explanation, not because of the decision. To deem that is not a goal-scoring opportunity, one of the most prolific goal-scorers we’ve seen.”
Roy Keane added: “What you need to win a cup is a bit of luck and that was a huge one.”
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