Mike Dean has shared his assessment of Alejandro Garnacho’s disallowed goal as Erik Ten Hag’s Manchester United ultimately suffered a 3-1 defeat at Arsenal on Sunday.
Mike Dean can empathize with Erik ten Hag’s frustration over the decision to disallow Alejandro Garnacho’s goal during Manchester United’s defeat to Arsenal.
Garnacho was ruled offside
In what appeared to be a dramatic late winner at the Emirates, Garnacho found the back of the net in the 88th minute. Nevertheless, VAR intervened, overturning the initial on-field decision and ruling that Garnacho was offside, despite being played through on goal by Casemiro.
That decision proved to be costly for Manchester United, as Arsenal capitalized with two late goals to secure the victory. Declan Rice unleashed a shot that took a deflection, putting Mikel Arteta’s team in the lead, after Martin Odegaard had equalized following Marcus Rashford’s opening goal. This was all before Gabriel Jesus sealed all three points with a splendid finish in the 101st minute.
Erik ten Hag expressed his frustration in his post-match interview with Sky Sports and was furious about three pivotal decisions, one of which was the disallowed goal by Garnacho. He insisted that the technology had made an error, stating, “It’s not offside. [It’s the] Wrong angle.”
Although the former official, Dean, held the view that the match officials had arrived at the right decision, he did show understanding for Erik ten Hag vexation. Speaking on Sky Sports, Dean commented, “It’s an extremely close call. I can appreciate why the assistant referee initially refrained from raising his flag. At a quick glance, I too thought it was an offside.”
He went on to say, “The technology can’t be faulted; the positioning of the lines has been accurate. I understand the manager’s perspective because the camera angle may not have been ideal, but we do possess the technology to ensure the correct placement of those lines.”
Gary Neville continued to probe Dean regarding the decision, offering his perspective. He remarked, “If we refer to the initial angle, it appears to be in line. This is precisely the point Erik ten Hag is making.”
Dean then proceeded to express his satisfaction with the decision, further elaborating his stance. He added, “Both managers are familiar with both camera angles. It did initially appear to be offside without the aid of the lines, and from the gantry, I am confident in the correctness of that decision.”
Ten Hag also expressed his dissatisfaction with the decision not to award a foul on Jonny Evans during Rice’s winning goal, as the defender was engaged in a physical altercation with Gabriel inside the penalty area.
Erik Ten Hag expressed dissatisfaction with the referee’s work after the loss to Arsenal
The third decision that Ten Hag disagreed with involved a potential penalty situation concerning new signing Rasmus Hojlund, who made his debut for Manchester United during the second half.
However, Dean, once again, believed that referee Anthony Taylor made the correct judgment. He stated, “I don’t think it’s a penalty. It’s solid defending. Both players were grappling for the ball. Hojlund grabbed his arm and pulled him down.”
