Cole Palmer netted a remarkable goal in Chelsea’s commanding 6-2 victory over Wolves, but video evidence suggests the goal shouldn’t have counted.
The England midfielder completed a swift counter-attack with an exquisite 30-yard chip over goalkeeper Jose Sa, giving Chelsea a 2-1 lead.
However, his goal in the 45th minute at Molineux should technically have been ruled out.
Just before Palmer scored, Chelsea’s attack began with a long pass from goalkeeper Robert Sanchez to Nicolas Jackson from a goal-kick.
Jackson redirected the ball to Palmer, who calmly lobbed Sa, taking advantage of the keeper being off his line ….
But slow-motion replays aired on beIN SPORTS revealed that the ball was still moving when Sanchez kicked it forward.
‘It’s rolling,’ said host Richard Keys during the analysis. ‘Strictly speaking it should be disallowed.’
The rules state that the ball has to be completely still before a restart – and players are often told to retake a kick for a ‘moving ball’.
However, in this instance, referee Darren England completely missed the rule violation during the live play.
Additionally, a lesser-known aspect of the rules prevented video assistant referee John Brooks from intervening.
VAR protocols do not permit checks on restarts in the build-up to a goal.
The officials at Stockley Park could only review for offside regarding Palmer’s goal, and since both he and Jackson were clearly onside, the goal stood.
Jackson had earlier given Chelsea the lead, but Matheus Cunha equalized with a sharp finish in the 27th minute before Palmer’s contentious strike.
Jorgen Strand Larsen brought Wolves level again just before halftime, but Enzo Maresca’s team dominated the second half.
Noni Madueke netted a 14-minute hat-trick, and Joao Felix sealed the emphatic win in the 80th minute, assisted by former Wolves winger Pedro Neto on his return to Chelsea.
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