27 November 2023 , 22:50
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Wolves manager Gary O'Neil has confirmed that the referee in his side's 3-2 defeat to Fulham admitted to him that the opposition's first penalty should NOT have been given.
The Premier League clash was filled with controversial decisions, including three spot kicks, two of which went against the visitors at Craven Cottage. Willian put Fulham 2-1 up in the second half for a penalty which O'Neil says referee Michael Salisbury admits was the wrong call, having misjudged Nelson Semedo's challenge on Tom Cairney.
"We discussed a lot of discussions. Vinicius should have been sent off for head-butting Max [Kilman]," the Wolves boss told Sky Sports post-match. "Tim Ream should have been sent off for a second bookable offence for the penalty. They are my opinion.
"Nelson touched the ball for the first penalty and doesn't touch Tom Cairney. The referee said he thinks he got it wrong and should have been sent to the monitor."
The furore comes following a series of decisions which have gone against Wolves this term, dating back to their opening game of the season away to Manchester United. Having been denied a late penalty after United goalkeeper Andre Onana clattered into Sasa Kalajdzic, the PGMOL sent an apology to the Molineux club.
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But O'Neil isn't interested in apologies and added after the bitter loss at Fulham: "That doesn't help me, our fans who have travelled here or our players who are feeling frustrated again. The referee has admitted it was a mistake.
"We disagree on the second one. I think it was really soft. You could argue two of them could go against us but for all four to go against us is very tough. We have been here a lot of times already this season and we don't deserve that. It is bad luck that it keeps going against us but there are bad referee decisions in there.
"I am trying to remain calm and I haven't been abusing the referee But there are six or seven points that have gone against us. I am managing a big club and the difference that is making to my reputation, us climbing the league and people's livelihoods is huge. With all the technology and time, in the biggest league in the world, it can't be okay that we are getting so many wrong."
Tom Cairney went down under a challenge for Nelson Semedo for the first of three penalties (Jacques Feeney/Offside/Offside via Getty Images)Get involved! Is it time to get rid of VAR? Let us know your verdict in the comments section.
The Wolves manager, whose side are 12th in the table after 13 games, continued: "We have two options now - me and my players keep behaving in a way that we should, respecting everybody and respecting the decisions. Or we start to make some noise. I have been very honest about that.
"I would rather be a decent human being and show respect but things need to get better. I can't accept being on the end so many wrong decisions like we have been. I have always been for VAR but it is causing a big problem at the moment. I just think it has cost us. It isn't helping much with subjective decisions. It has finally turned me against VAR."