The Premier League’s Key Match Incidents Panel has ruled that Sunderland were correctly denied a penalty for a potential handball by Elliot Anderson during their 5-3 defeat to Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.
The incident occurred early in the second half when the ball struck Anderson’s arm while he challenged Enzo Le Fée for possession inside the area. Referee Robert Jones allowed play to continue, and VAR determined there was insufficient evidence of a clear and obvious error to warrant an on-field review.
The KMI Panel supported Jones’s original decision, though the verdict was far from unanimous. Three of the five panellists agreed that no penalty was the correct call, while two believed Anderson made a deliberate secondary movement with his arm constituting a handball offence. The panel noted that Anderson and Le Fée were engaged in a physical duel and the ball reached the City midfielder from close range after bouncing and deflecting off a Sunderland player.
VAR’s decision not to intervene received slightly stronger backing, with four members supporting the video officials and one advocating for an intervention. The outcome means City avoided being judged to have benefited from a refereeing error during a dramatic eight-goal contest on September 20.
Sunderland manager Régis Le Bris expressed frustration with the decision after the match, with his side pushing City throughout an unusually open encounter. Brian Brobbey netted a hat-trick for the visitors, but goals from Enzo Fernández, Rayan Cherki, Erling Haaland, and a brace from Antoine Semenyo secured a 5-3 victory for the hosts.
The Anderson incident was not the only handball decision assessed by the panel from the fixture. An earlier appeal against Marc Guéhi was unanimously judged not to be an offence, as his arms were deemed to be in an expected position. Guéhi was also involved in the build-up to Semenyo’s first goal when the ball struck his arm, but four of the five panellists supported the decision to allow the goal, ruling the contact accidental and noting the defender was not the scorer.
The Premier League began publishing its KMI Panel findings weekly this season to provide greater transparency around major refereeing and VAR decisions. The Anderson verdict nevertheless underscores how subjective handball rulings remain, with the panel itself narrowly divided over whether City should have conceded a penalty.
