Former referee calls out Howard Webb after “nonsense” Aston Villa decision that left Emery fuming

Aston Villa fell short against Nottingham Forest on Saturday after losing 2-1 at the City Ground, however, Unai Emery felt that his team should have had a “clear penalty”. 

Late goals from Nikola Milenkovic and Anthony Elanga secured the three points for Forest after Villa took the lead through Jhon Duran – who has emerged as a target for PSG in recent weeks.

Emery would not have been happy with his team’s failure to see out the match, but that was not the only thing the Spanish coach was talking about after the full-time whistle.

Just after the half-hour mark, Morgan Rogers had his appeals waved away by referee Sam Barratt having gone to ground inside the box from Elliott Anderson’s pull on his left arm, which was not the only controversial decision Rogers has been involved in lately. The incident looked like a clear foul and it was a topic Emery was keen to discuss with the press.

“Now I have watched it, it’s a clear penalty,” the Aston Villa coach told the media via The Athletic. “It’s a massive mistake from the VAR. Today the VAR is a big mistake because it was clear, he had an advantage.”

Anderson’s challenge was deemed to be a “fleeting grab”, a term that has left former referee Keith Hackett unhappy.

Aston Villa penalty call labelled as “nonsense” by Keith Hackett

Speaking about the foul on Rogers, Hackett has stated that the PGMOL and their chief Howard Webb must sort out the “mess” surrounding the holding law after VAR deemed it to be fleeting contact.

“This is a clear holding offence that impacts on the attacking player,” the former referee told Villa News. “A penalty kick should have been awarded.

“To say that the holding offence did not impact on the player is abject nonsense. The referee Sam Barrot should have been sent to the screen to have a second look.

“Frankly the PGMOL under the leadership of Howard Webb needs to sort out the mess on holding that is continually going unpunished.”