Newcastle United's opener against Fulham stood because goalscorer Sean Longstaff did not handle the ball.
There were 39 minutes on the clock of the FA Cup fourth-round tie when Lewis Miley's hooked pass struck the arm of Bruno Guimaraes. The ball then fell to Longstaff, who volleyed Newcastle in front at Craven Cottage.
Fulham players quickly surrounded referee Jarred Gillett to appeal for handball and Lee Dixon, who was co-commentating for ITV, said he 'could not see how it can come off his hand...and it not have an effect'. Colleague Clive Tyldesley, meanwhile, suggested Fulham will wonder 'why it's been allowed' on a night the hosts suffered a 2-0 defeat against the Magpies.
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So why didn't VAR intervene? Well, the accidental attacking handball offence only applies to the goal scorer. The fact the ball hit the arm of Bruno, whose limbs were in a natural position, did not matter.
There was no conspiracy at play here and, in fact, Fulham benefitted from this very rule last season when Aleksandar Mitrovic headed the ball on to his hand and into the path of Harrison Reed to score in a 3-0 win at Crystal Palace last season. Just as that goal stood, so, too, did Longstaff's on Saturday because the goalscorer, himself, did not handle the ball.
"That was the explanation," Reed told the club's website. "The argument from some was that the referee saw the handball in the first place so why didn't he blow it?
"By the letter of the law, the person who handballs it doesn't score. They check it and the goal stands. You conceded just before half-time. It's a tough one to take."
Fulham boss Marco Silva simply stated it was a 'handball' after the game and questioned whether it was, indeed, 'accidental'. Eddie Howe, for his part, was just relieved the goal stood.
"I don't want to be too clever with this," the Newcastle head coach added. "In an ideal world, I don't want to see handball in those situations, whether that's for or against me.
"As long as the arm is not raised and not away from the body and Bruno's, I've only seen it live but it was by his side. It probably did hit his arm. You might get a different answer if we were on the receiving end, but I like to see goals like that given to be honest."
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