Leeds United played out another controversial game tonight after the Manchester City clash, on Saturday, as the referee again dominated the headlines against Sunderland at Elland Road.
Joe Rodon’s goal was disallowed for a marginal offside just after the hour mark, and just minutes later, Sunderland scored from the penalty spot after VAR intervened to punish Ethan Ampadu for intentional handball inside the box.
The referee was not the most popular man at Elland Road for a second game running, but he also made another egregious error in the first half, which could have tilted the scales towards the home side.
Former Leeds striker Jermain Beckford has claimed Leeds should have had a clear penalty, which could have really put Leeds in an advantageous position before the break.
The ex-Leeds United hero hammers the referee for a poor error
Leeds supporters believe that their team were denied a clear penalty in the 1-0 defeat against Manchester City on Saturday, and the same thing happened tonight.
Beckford insisted that Leeds should have had a clear penalty when Sunderland’s Luke O’Nien had his arms around Leeds defender Pascal Struijk and pulled him down.
He stressed that it was a horrendous situation, and the referee and VAR should be embarrassed for coming to the conclusion that there was nothing to see in that incident.
Jermaine Beckford said on TNT Sports: “Absolutely [it’s a penalty], I’m so bemused as to how the referees and the VAR officials haven’t given a penalty, it’s clear as day.
“O’Nien on Pascal Struijk, arms around the neck, drags him down to the floor, how on earth is that not a penalty? It’s absolutely embarrassing.”
The Whites have had bad luck with referees
If the frustrations at Manchester City boiled over, Daniel Farke had more reasons to feel furious after the Sunderland clash tonight at Elland Road
The officials’ decision to look away when Struijk was fouled, the marginal offside call and the penalty awarded to Sunderland were all sources of real frustration.
Leeds have had serious issues with referees throughout the season, and there is a real feeling that the club could have been higher up the table if they had a little more luck.
The result was a poor one tonight, but Leeds have legitimate reasons to complain against the officials again for the second game running at Elland Road.
Leeds hope that poor refereeing decisions do not end up costing them more points from now until the end of the season.
