- Disallowed Fulham strike wins club award
- VAR panel admitted costly refereeing blunder
- Cottagers look to recover against Leeds
The incident in question came in the 22nd minute of Fulham’s clash with their west London rivals. King latched onto a clever through-ball from Sander Berge, drove at the heart of the Blues’ defence, sent Tosin Adarabioyo tumbling with a neat feint, and rifled a shot past the ‘keeper.
However, jubilation quickly turned to fury as VAR intervened. Michael Salisbury advised referee Rob Jones to review a coming together moments earlier between Rodrigo Muniz and Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah near the halfway line. Muniz had accidentally trodden on Chalobah’s foot, and after several tense minutes, the referee ruled the goal out for a foul.
Howard Webb, chief refereeing officer of Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), later admitted the officials had got it wrong. He said the disallowed goal was a “misjudgement” and that both the VAR and referee should have allowed the strike to stand. The Premier League‘s independent review panel echoed Webb’s assessment, releasing a statement that the “original on-field decision” to let play continue was the correct call. The unanimous verdict made the frustration even sharper for Fulham, who went on to lose 2-0.
Fulham’s response was to celebrate the strike anyway. Their goal of the month announcement hailed King’s composure and skill, noting that while the moment had been robbed, “there is no denying the brilliance of the effort”.
A statement from the club read: “King’s magnificent strike away to Chelsea has been voted as Fulham’s Goal of the Month for August. Though it was cruelly taken away from the 18-year-old, there is no denying the skill of the effort, as he confidently burst forward onto Sander Berge’s defence-splitting pass and cut inside Tosin, before sitting the former Fulham man down as he drilled a shot through his legs and inside the near post. That he garnered 83.1 per cent of the votes demonstrates how special a moment that was, or would have been.”
Fulham will have the chance to put the controversy behind them when they welcome Leeds United to Craven Cottage this weekend. The focus will be on bouncing back and ensuring that moments of brilliance, like King’s dazzling strike, actually count.
