Brighton head coach Fabian Hurzeler accuses officials of making 'guess' for West Ham penalty
Lewis Dunk was penalised for handball after referee Michael Salisbury had not awarded a penalty, but the VAR official intervened.
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Brighton & Hove Albion head coach Fabian Hurzeler accused the officials of guesswork in awarding a penalty to West Ham in the 2-2 draw at the London Stadium.
Captain Lewis Dunk was penalised for handball when blocking a shot by Callum Wilson on the stroke of half-time. Referee Michael Salisbury did not award a penalty, but changed his mind after he was advised by Video Assistant Referee Stuart Attwell to review the incident on the pitchside monitor.
Lucas Paqueta scored from the spot to put West Ham 2-1 up.
“No-one can say it was a clear hand (ball) and the VAR footage is not clear enough, so therefore it is just a guess and we are the best league in the world,” Hurzeler told reporters.
“To make a decision just because of a guess, I think that’s not possible.”
Hurzeler defended Danny Welbeck’s panenka penalty in the first half that hit the bar and would have put Brighton into a 2-1 lead, minutes after he had equalised from the spot with his eighth goal of the season.
“Danny made his decision,” Hurzeler said. “If he executed well, everyone says ‘what a penalty, what a great decision in a situation with a lot of pressure’. He has our support.
“He has already helped us so much this season.”
Joel Veltman scored a second equaliser for Hurzeler’s side in the 61st minute, the Dutch defender’s first goal since May 2024 on his first start since September, after Jarrod Bowen slotted West Ham into an early lead.
Winger Yankuba Minteh will have a scan on a right leg injury which forced him off after 58 minutes.
Brighton’s second draw in December against West Ham (1-1 at home), extended the winless run for Hurzeler’s side to six matches and dropped them to 14th in the table. They face next-to-bottom Burnley next at the Amex Stadium on Saturday.
Andy Naylor worked for 32.5 years on the sports desk of The Argus, Brighton’s daily newspaper. For the last 25 of those years he was chief sports reporter, primarily responsible for coverage of Brighton and Hove Albion FC. Follow Andy on Twitter @AndyNaylorBHAFC