Pundits on Sky Sports’ ‘Ref Watch’ were left visibly stunned by former official Dermot Gallagher’s comments regarding a major incident during Manchester United’s 2-1 win over rivals Manchester City on Sunday. The Red Devils staged an incredible late comeback to hand Ruben Amorim a victory in his first-ever Manchester derby, while leaving the hosts with just a single win in their last eleven matches.
Despite the result going in their favour, not everything went United’s way at the Etihad. One moment in particular left fans scratching their heads as Rasmus Hojlund was bundled over in the penalty area by a clumsy Ruben Dias challenge. While the VAR agreed with the on-field decision of no penalty, many believed that the wrong call had been made. Now, Gallagher has left fans and colleagues shocked by his assessment of the incident.
Reviewing the incident with co-hosts Stephen Warnock and Sue Smith, Gallagher remained adamant that Hojlund had gone down far too easily under Dias’ challenge and believed that the Danish striker was looking for a spot kick, despite his colleagues’ protestations. Gallagher stated:
“I just thought Hojlund was happy to go down. I didn’t think he was really interested chasing after the ball. His knee’s buckled.”
Warnock, in particular, was left flabbergasted by the suggestion and couldn’t hide his reaction when the cameras panned back around to him. Both he and Smith argued that Dias’ attempt to play the ball had been rash, and the angle of his leading leg – which attempted to hook the ball away but instead brought down the striker – was why Hojlund had gone to ground, rather than the insinuation that he had dived.
In response, Gallagher simply smirked before remarking, “It’s not easy being a ref,” and reinstating his view that the right decision had been made. The former official did, however, later go on to agree that Matheus Nunes’ challenge on Amad Diallo that eventually led to the visitors’ equaliser was rightly awarded as a penalty.