Football fans have poked fun at referee Simon Hooper after his ‘nervous’ explanation as to why Newcastle had a goal ruled out against Arsenal.
Eddie Howe’s side welcomed the Gunners to St James’ Park on Wednesday night for the second leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final tie and claimed a 2-0 victory to book their place in the final at Wembley.
Within minutes, Newcastle thought they had taken the lead after Alexander Isak raced in behind and smashed the ball home.
But it was swiftly ruled out after consultation from VAR. Hooper then had the task of explaining the decision to frustrated crowd at St James’ Park.
Addressing the crowd, he said: ‘After review, the goalscorer [Isak] was in an offside position. The restart is an indirect free-kick for offside.’
A screenshot from Sky Sports’ coverage showed that the Swedish international had in fact strayed into an offside position.
Simon Hooper (left) had to explain Newcastle’s disallowed goal over the stadium speakers
Alexander Isak raced into an offside position before finding the back of the net early on
Meanwhile, Gary Neville reflected on the incident and said: ‘It’s the first time I’ve seen it live. Who’d be a referee? If you wanted to make them more unpopular, let them announce a disallowed goal.’
It didn’t take long for fans to share their opinions on the matter, with many suggestion the official looked ‘like a nervous kid’.
One fan wrote: ‘Simon Hooper delivering his lines far too quickly there. Like a nervous kid in the school play’.
‘I did not expect Simon Hooper to sound like that’, another quipped.
One user said: ‘Simon Hooper has strong Gladiators Referee Vibes based on that VAR announcement. Utterly pointless announcement but solid annunciation’.
‘Simon Hooper s****ing himself while announcing that decision to the most hostile crowd in the premier league was some viewing’, another said.
The Premier League wants referees to announce VAR decisions inside the stadium from the start of next season.
‘Frankly, it’s not good enough [VAR communication with supporters in stadiums],’ Tony Scholes, the league’s chief football officer, said.
Gary Neville was left in stitches after seeing Hooper explain the decision on the pitch
Fans were quick to suggest that Hooper ‘like a nervous kid’ as he made the announcement
‘None of us here at the league believe it’s good enough, and we have a long way to go to improve it. We are constrained by IFAB. But we should improve it to the extent that we are able and authorised to do so.
‘Our intention is for the referee to announce VAR decisions in the middle of the pitch from the start of next season. With regard to further VAR comms, we will continue to lobby IFAB to allow us to open up as much as we can.”
Meanwhile, Newcastle included Cheick Tiote’s son as the mascot for their Carabao Cup semi-final against Arsenal.
The Magpies welcomed Rafael for the match against the Gunners as they sought to seal a place in the final.
His inclusion comes on the 14th anniversary of his late father’s famous goal against Arsenal.
Tiote memorably scored a stunning, 30-yard volley to complete one of the great Premier League comebacks.
Newcastle earned a 4-4 draw at home to Arsenal having been 4-0 down at half time back in 2011.
It was Tiote’s only goal for the club during his seven years at St James’ Park, during which time he made 156 appearances.
