Refereeing body admits judgement error over Haaland derby winner
Refereeing body admits judgement error over Haaland derby winner. The Premier League refereeing body Pro Ref admits an error of judgement in awarding Erling Haaland's winner in the Manchester derby.
What happened
Figure caption, Haaland scores controversial winner as Man City win derby despite Foden redByJess AndersonBBC Sport journalistPublished13 September 2026The Premier League refereeing body Pro Ref has admitted an "error of judgement" in awarding Erling Haaland's Manchester City winner against Manchester United. Haaland scores controversial winner as Man City win derby despite Foden redThis content is not available in your location. There was an errorErling Haaland's goal helps Manchester City win a highly controversial Manchester derby at rivals Manchester United despite playing with 10 men for more than 70 minutes.
As City celebrated a remarkable derby victory over Manchester United, there were questions as to whether Haaland's winning goal should have stood in a match fraught with controversy. "Contact has been made with Manchester United this evening to acknowledge what we deem is an error of judgement. Figure caption, Refereeing decisions were 'baffling' – RooneyWhen Haaland's goal was ruled out as offside on the field, few questioned the decision as the City striker looked to have drifted beyond United's defensive line.
Figure caption, Carrick 'baffled' by decision to award controversial Man City goalManchester derby: Haaland goal controversy & should Foden have been sent off?
The wider picture
Haaland scores controversial winner for 10-man City at Man UtdConfusion as Man Utd seethe at 'injustice' With Haaland's goal settling the match, United were unsurprisingly disappointed by the decision. But there was debate as to whether the offside Enzo Fernandez, diving at the ball in a more central position than Haaland, was interfering with play. Haaland's winning goal – why is it controversial? The lines drawn by the VAR showed Haaland to be onside thanks to Dorgu's boot.
Gvardiol's cross took a slight deflection off the boot of Dorgu before finding its way to Haaland at the back post, while Fernandez was clearly attempting a diving header in the middle of the six-yard box but he did not touch the ball. The Premier League Match Centre said on X: "VAR checked the referee's call of no goal for offside – and determined that Haaland was in an onside position and recommended that the goal was awarded.
"Figure caption, Haaland explains his 'smile' during VAR goal checkA clear VAR mistake – analysisDale Johnson, BBC Sport football issues correspondentThe curiosity about this incident is that the goal was initially disallowed for the wrong reason. Haaland was flagged offside when he shouldn't have been.
What has been reported
However, the goal was originally ruled out for offside against Haaland – which was incorrect. "It's so hard because you lose a derby, you lose three points at home, and every season they're [referees] coming to our club, they explain for one hour the rules, and they look so confident with that, and then after [there are] five or six people doing these kind of mistakes in the Premier League – it's unacceptable. "Former Tottenham midfielder Danny Murphy, added: "If Enzo doesn't make the run Martinez sticks wth Haaland, The second person it effects is the goalkeeper.
Foden then kicked out at the body of the Portuguese midfielder while on the ground and was shown a straight red card by the referee. The striker scored in the 60th minute at Old Trafford, turning home at the back post from Josko Gvardiol's cross before it was disallowed on the field for offside. Following intervention from the video assistant referee, the goal was awarded – the Norwegian ruled to have been played onside by Patrick Dorgu's boot.
In a statement, Pro Ref said: "It was established that Enzo Fernandez did not play the ball and therefore that makes any offside offence subjective. "However, on this occasion, the VAR did not recognise the likely impact of his position and should have recommended an on-field review.
What happens next
"United defender Lisandro Martinez said it was an "injustice" while boss Michael Carrick said he was "confused" by the decision. The goal came after City had gone down to 10 men in the first half when Phil Foden was shown a straight red card for kicking out at United captain Bruno Fernandes. Foden was dismissed by referee Michael Oliver on 23 minutes after kicking the midriff of Fernandes while he was on the turf. But it was the positioning and involvement of Fernandez that left many pundits astounded and unsure if it was a legitimate goal.
Fernandez appeared to be in an offside position, ahead of Dorgu's boot, but VAR deemed it to be a legitimate goal as he did not touch the ball while United defender Martinez was also closing in. "The VAR also deemed that while in an offside position, Fernandez didn't play the ball. But as it turned out, the goal should have been ruled out because Fernandez was offside.
The report has been compiled by The Daily Waves using information reported across bbc.co.uk. Details are presented according to the information available at the time of publication and may change as authorities, organisers or other relevant parties provide updates.