VAR didn’t check Leicester ace Ayoze Perez’s handball in the FA Cup Final because it didn’t occur “immediately” before Youri Tielemans’ screamer
The Foxes won their first ever FA Cup on Saturday after beating Chelsea 1-0 at Wembley thanks to Tielemans’ sensational winner.
However, the star midfielder’s stunner was met with some controversy as the ball hit Perez’s hand, via his knee, when he tried to intercept a Reece James pass in the build-up.
Luke Thomas then picked up the ball and fed the Belgium international who launched an unstoppable 30-yard shot, which gave Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga absolutely no chance.
A number of Blues players implored referee Michael Oliver to check the incident on VAR and a raft of fans echoed the same sentiments on social media.
However, former Premier League referee Peter Walton explained that the supposed offence didn’t create Tielemans’ goalscoring opportunity and thus didn’t fall under VAR’s jurisdiction.
Walton also claimed that Leicester ace Perez didn’t break any rules as the ball came off his knee first.
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He told BT Sport: “It’s a subjective viewpoint whether or not it was handball.
“Personally, I don’t think it was a handball, the ball has deflected off Perez’s knee and just caught his arm.
“That in itself people may argue is handball, I don’t think it was.
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“However, VAR would not have got involved in that incident because the actual goalscoring opportunity didn’t occur immediately when there was a potential handball.
“There was seven seconds or so between that potential handball and the ball hitting the back of the net.
“That’s not immediately and the law states it’s only an offence if the goalscoring opportunity happens immediately, so good use of VAR.”
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
