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'It should have been a penalty' - Ex-refs chief re-analyses Aston Villa vs Man City footage
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- 'It should have been a penalty' - Ex-refs chief re-analyses Aston Villa vs Man City footage
Ian Maatsen was fortunate not to concede a penalty during Aston Villa's shock 2-1 win over Manchester City at Villa Park.
That is according to former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA referee, Keith Hackett, who exclusively told Football Insiderthat his challenge anywhere else on the pitch would have been called as a foul.
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Enzo Maresca's side were finally beaten for the first time in the 2026-27 Premier League season, unable to handle Nicolas Jackson through the middle.
Erling Haaland grabbed one back for the visitors on Saturday, 24 October, but it was nothing more than a consolation, with a couple of penalty claims falling on deaf ears.
One of them came in the 31st minute, as Iliman Ndiaye drove into Villa's penalty area, falling to ground when coming up against Maatsen.
Replays showed Ndiaye's foot landing on Maatsen, causing him to lose balance and hit the turf, but Peter Bankes didn't even entertain the idea of a spot-kick.
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Ian Maatsen gets away with one vs Man City
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, Hackett admitted that he can understand the frustration, and stated that Man City were unlucky not to be awarded a penalty.
"Well, it's a clumsy challenge for sure. And as a result, one asks is if that was midfield, you'd be given a foul," he said.
"Therefore the penalty is no different to in midfield. That's a foul on the defender. Now on the attacker, I think one of the things that might have influenced the referee not to give it is the way the player finished up.
"He finished up, rather than falling forward and hands out, he's actually gone backwards. Although he's moving forward, his legs have gone up, as though he's exaggerating the fall.
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"I think that may well have influenced the referee to not give it. But for me, it's a careless challenge and it should have resulted in a penalty kick."
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Moments before Ndiaye's claim, Johan Manzambi went crashing into Elliot Anderson, wanting a spot-kick of his own in the first half at Villa Park.
This was likely more of a claim than Man City's, but had this been awarded, then Ndiaye never would have burst into Villa's penalty area at the other end.
