Former ref gives firm verdict on Pogba goal

Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher says the officials got it wrong in allowing Paul Pogba’s goal against the Hammers to stand.

The Frenchman equalised with a stunner from range against the Hammers, as Manchester United came from 1-0 down to win 3-1.

The ball looked to have gone out, though, when Dean Henderson punted it forward, before it landed at the feet of Bruno Fernandes, who played the ball across to Pogba.

David Moyes claimed afterwards that he saw the ball go out and that has since been confirmed by other media outlets.

Dermot Gallagher has now weighed in, declaring the decision, quite clearly, was wrong, and has laid the blame at the feet of the linesman on that side, who simply wasn’t looking where he should have been!

Speaking to Sky Sports, he said: “There’s a couple of issues here. The guy that had the best view didn’t use it. The assistants prioritise offsides and the ball out of play. In this situation the ball was so far down the wing when Henderson kicked it that offside is immaterial at that point, the key issue is where is the ball going to go.

“The assistant is looking straight across the field at the offside and doesn’t see the flight of the ball, so it didn’t get picked up on the field. When it went to VAR, there was no conclusive evidence that the ball had gone out.

There is little doubt that Pogba’s goal completely changed the pattern of the game, as United went on to score twice more and take all three points.

Disappointing!