'Both penalty decisions were poor, so one cancelled the other out'
- Published
Former players Alan Shearer and Martin Keown have criticised the use of the handball laws in Sheffield United's 3-1 win over Luton Town in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon.
In his post-match interview, manager Rob Edwards said "I don't know what handball is anymore" after VAR awarded Sheffield United a penalty.
"I think it was actually the decision made by Paul Tierney, the VAR man in charge on the day. I just don't get this [first penalty call] to be honest," Keown explained on Match of the Day.
"Not a single player was complaining, saying it was a handball or whatever. It was completely out of kilter with the expectation of the players. How are you supposed to get out of the way of this? The proximity is just ridiculous.
"To say that's not a natural position to be in is ridiculous. Who are they asking, by the way? Your arm has to come up to rebalance, so that's ridiculous.
"The good thing was both of the penalty decisions were really poor, so maybe one cancelled the other out. He [referee Chris Kavanagh] was asked to look at it, by the way, and he still didn't change his mind."
All-time Premier League top goalscorer Alan Shearer branded the rule "an absolute joke" after Luton were also awarded a similar penalty: "If you think the first one [penalty call] is a bad one, have a look at the second one with [Vini] Souza. It's an absolute joke of a decision.
"I really think that he [Kavanagh] thinks VAR has given the first one so he's going to even it up for the second one. How on earth does he think that's a handball? It's a crazy decision.
"The handball law, as we know, is an absolute joke. You're hearing managers and players saying, 'we just don't know what handball is anymore' every single week.
"These are the same guys, IFAB, who are making the handball law and want to bring blue cards in for sin bins. Do me a favour man, honestly."