Mark Clattenburg, the former Premier League referee, has backed Chris Kavanagh's decision to award Manchester City's contentious winner against Wolves. The match saw City triumph 2-1 due to a late header from John Stones, initially disallowed as Bernardo Silva was judged offside and interfering with Wolves' goalkeeper Jose Sa.
However, after a VAR check and reviewing the goal on the pitchside monitor, Kavanagh reversed his decision. This move sparked widespread controversy, with ex-City players Micah Richards and Daniel Sturridge confessing they believed Silva had "affected the play".
Yet, Clattenburg defended Kavanagh's call in a Daily Mail column. "Chris Kavanagh was completely correct in making sure the winner stood," he penned. "Yes, Bernardo Silva was in an offside position when John Stones crashed his header beyond Jose Sa, but there's more to it.
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"Secondly, does Silva impact Sa's ability to play the ball at the precise moment that Stones makes contact? Again, the answer is no, as the header goes straight through the goalkeeper.
"It was telling that there were no protests from Sa or any Wolves players. It was only once Gary O'Neil and his coaching staff had watched the replay that they hoped to find a reason - any reason - to get the goal disallowed."
The Premier League match center also issued a statement on social media explaining the process behind the decision. "Stones' goal was disallowed on-field due to Bernardo Silva being in an offside position and in the goalkeeper's line of vision," they stated.
"The VAR deemed Bernardo Silva wasn't in the line of vision and had no impact on the goalkeeper and recommended an on-field review. The referee overturned his original decision and a goal was awarded."
