West Ham’s manager, David Moyes, believed his team was unfairly rejected a late penalty as they lost 1-0 to Freiburg in the opening leg of their Europa League semifinal match.
In extra time, the Hammers were not allowed what appeared to be a straightforward spot-kick for handball by the referee, who refused to alter his ruling even after consulting the pitchside monitor.
The ball struck little Noah Weisshaupt of Freiburg on his arm in a congested penalty area, but referee Alejandro Hernandez followed to his ruling following a protracted VAR check.
“You know what, I have to ask, what exactly are you performing with your hands above your head? If it had been given against us, we would probably have thought it was cruel” stated Moyes.
“They’re attempting to argue that there must been a minor push, which is why it wasn’t provided, but if that was the case, they need to have opened the game with a free kick.
“It could not even be taken into account because there wasn’t enough of a force to justify a free-kick. Two arms are raised above the boy’s head.
“I’m not sure if that could be given in the Premier League, but in UEFA competitions in Europe, the officials usually give them. I follow German and Spanish football, and I see almost every handball.
We simply need to accept it and move on, especially in light of the incident we have against Kurt (Zouma) at Everton the other day.
That being said, West Ham merely had themselves to blame for the loss after failing to score in the Black Forest.