Ex-PL referee says Brighton were robbed of two penalties against Tottenham Hotspur
Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher has claimed that Brighton & Hove Albion could have had two penalties against Tottenham Hotspur in their 2-1 Premier League loss this weekend.
Spurs came away with all three points in a crucial league game against a resilient Seagulls side with Harry Kane’s late goal proving to be the winner. However, things could have been very different had the referee awarded Brighton two penalties on the day.
Kaoru Mitoma was brought down by Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg inside the box in the 71st minute with the score still at 1-1. No penalty was given by referee Stuart Atwell and VAR. For Gallagher, this was clearly a wrong call.
He said, via Sky Sports:
“Wrong decision. Brighton should have been awarded a penalty. The referee has got the perfect position. He should just give a penalty. The referee quite clearly says ‘no’ but Hojbjerg doesn’t get anywhere near the ball.”
There was another incident where Clement Lenglet seemed to have pulled Lewis Dunk inside the box. No penalty was given, and VAR agreed. According to Gallagher, this was another decision that could have gone Brighton’s way.
“Lenglet lucky to avoid giving away a penalty. Lenglet puts two hands on him and when you do that you run a massive risk. Again, the referee is looking at it but waves it away.”
It was a controversial game, where Mitoma also saw a goal ruled out for handball when the ball seemed to have touched his chest/shoulder. Tempers flared in the dugout as well with both Roberto De Zerbi and Cristian Stellini clashing on the touchline and getting sent off.
The referee had a poor game – as simple as that. We deserved to win because we took our chances and kept Brighton at bay for large parts of the game. But being a fan of a team doesn’t mean you have to be deluded.
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We got lucky with the penalty calls and the handball call on Mitoma. There is no shame in admitting that. Instead, we should work on avoiding such situations next time and be thankful that these mistakes didn’t cost us anything. Let’s hope we finish the season well under Stellini, although Ryan Mason may be the man on the touchline for a short while given the Italian’s red card.
