Arsenal penalty against Sunderland was wrong, independent panel rules

Mikel Arteta’s criticism of the penalty awarded against Arsenal in their 2-0 win over Sunderland has been backed by the Premier League’s independent Key Match Incidents (KMI) panel.

The five-member committee unanimously concluded that referee John Brooks made the wrong on-field decision when he awarded Sunderland a spot-kick following a corner.

Brooks judged that defender Ezri Konsa had fouled Dan Ballard inside the penalty area. Arteta described the decision as “unacceptable” after the match, although Arsenal avoided conceding when goalkeeper David Raya saved Enzo Le Fee’s penalty in the 55th minute.

In its official report, published this week, the KMI panel said: “The panel unanimously agreed that the referee’s decision to award a penalty for holding was incorrect.”

The committee acknowledged that there had been significant contact between the two players but concluded that Ballard was responsible for the decisive action.

“Although the intervention was extremely forceful, with Konsa initially surrounding Ballard, Ballard held Konsa and pulled him towards him, causing both players to fall to the ground,” the report added.

VAR decision upheld

Despite unanimously ruling that the original decision was wrong, the panel supported the decision by the video assistant referee not to intervene or recommend an on-field review.

The report said the decision not to involve VAR was upheld by a 3-2 majority. Most members believed the referee’s call did not amount to a clear and obvious error because the actions of both players were intertwined.

The KMI is an independent body made up of three former players or coaches, one representative from the Premier League and one representative from Pro Ref, the organisation responsible for refereeing in England. Its findings are regarded as the technical reference point for assessing refereeing decisions.

The ruling comes at a significant point in Arsenal’s season. The holders are currently second in the table after suffering a surprise 3-0 defeat by Brighton on Saturday.

The Premier League has since paused for the international break, with Arsenal due to host Leeds United on 10 October.