David Moyes was left puzzled as his West Ham team were denied a vital penalty in the dying moments of the first leg of their Europa League last-16 clash with Freiburg.
The Hammers now head back to the London Stadium trailing 1-0 after Michael Gregoritsch’s goal gave the German side the edge in a closely fought contest.
Despite being on the brink of being awarded a late opportunity to equalize, when Tomas Soucek’s shot hit the hand of Freiburg’s Noah Weisshaupt in the box, VAR deliberated for over four minutes before the referee decided to stick with his original decision, much to West Ham’s disappointment.
Discussing the contentious moment, Moyes questioned Weisshaupt’s hand position, stating, “They claimed there was a slight push, but should have just restarted play with a free-kick if that was the case. It wasn’t a significant enough push to warrant a free-kick, so it shouldn’t have factored in. The player had his arms above his head.”
Moyes also highlighted the difference in refereeing decisions between UEFA competitions and the Premier League, noting that handballs tend to be more strictly enforced in European competition. Despite the disappointment, he emphasized the importance of moving on from the decision and focusing on the next match.
