VAR got it right at Newcastle and Arsenal were the lucky ones, independent panel rules

The referee and VAR were right to award Newcastle United's winning goal against Arsenal, says the Premier League's Independent Key Match Incidents Panel.

Mikel Arteta was left livid after Antony Gordon's strike was allowed to stand, with the Magpies managing a 1-0 win over the Gunners.

Referee Stuart Attwell awarded the goal after three separate VAR checks by Andy Madley at Stockley Park.

These were to see if the ball had gone out, if a foul had been committed by Joelinton on Gabriel, or whether there was an offside against Gordon.

The panel voted, with a 4-1 result in favour of the goal standing, stating: «Although Joelinton does have his hands on Gabriel, there isn't enough to award a foul as Gabriel had made an action to play the ball before any contact.»

Following the conclusion of the match, Arsenal released a statement, with Arteta furious with the officials and VAR.

The panel also revealed Arsenal's Kai Havertz was lucky to remain on the pitch and should have been given his marching orders.

His 36th-minute challenge on Sean Longstaff was deemed 'a very dangerous challenge and the type of tackle that needs to be eradicated.'

Although there was a split 3-2 verdict, Newcastle star Bruno Guimaraes' arm on Jorginho's head during the 45th minute also resulted in a missed red card.

Three former players and/or managers make up the panel's five members, along with one representative from the Premier League and PGMOL.

Rather than depending on the opinions of PGMOL or the clubs themselves, it was established at the beginning of the previous season to provide an unbiased evaluation of decision-making.

The objective of the ruling is to offer an unbiased evaluation of all significant match situations.