Referee Chris Kavanagh and his assistant Nick Greenhalgh faced significant backlash after a series of controversial calls during the FA Cup match between Aston Villa and Newcastle United. The game, which lacked video assistant referees (VAR), saw the pair missing crucial decisions that could have altered the outcome.
Among the errors, the most glaring was the missed offside call against Tammy Abraham, resulting in Aston Villa's opening goal. Additionally, a potential red card for Lucas Digne's challenge on Jacob Murphy and a possible offside against Dan Burn on Newcastle's equaliser were overlooked. However, the decision that sparked the most debate was the non-penalty call for a handball by Digne.
Despite being two yards inside the penalty area, Kavanagh and Greenhalgh ruled the offence as a yard outside the area, awarding a free-kick from which Sandro Tonali scored Newcastle's equaliser in the 63rd minute. This decision was widely criticized, with Wayne Rooney calling it one of the worst he had ever seen.
Despite the criticism, Chris Kavanagh remains a highly regarded referee, recently promoted to UEFA's elite list of referees alongside Michael Oliver and Anthony Taylor. The other assistant referee, Gary Beswick, has been assigned to the Nottingham Forest versus Liverpool match on Sunday.
