North London derby referee stands by decision to rule out Tottenham equaliser

The referee who disallowed a Tottenham Hotspur equaliser in Sunday’s north London derby has said he is “comfortable” with the decision to chalk off Randal Kolo Muani’s goal.

Peter Bankes awarded Arsenal a free kick for a Kolo Muani push on Gabriel after the France striker thought he had scored for the second time in the match.

The goal would have levelled the game at 2-2 in the second half, but Arsenal quickly scored for a third time and went on to win 4-1.

Several pundits have questioned Bankes’ decision, with Danny Murphy and Shay Given pointing out that similar incidents – including a Hugo Ekitike push on Spurs’ Cristian Romero before scoring for Liverpool in December — have gone unpunished this season during Match of the Day’s coverage.

Speaking on Match Officials Mic’d UpBankes said: “I see two hands from the Tottenham player into the back of the Arsenal player and that is going to be my main focus. Once you see two hands in live play, it looks like a push, a clear push.

“I delayed the whistle so that the play could continue, then obviously gave my final decision once the ball had gone into the goal and that allows the VAR then to potentially check if I’ve misread something or if it doesn’t quite look right. But on field it looked a very, very clear offence.”

Peter Bankes told Conor Gallagher that Kolo Muani’s push on Gabriel was a “clear foul” (Catherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images)

Sky Sports’ ref cam footage showed Bankes telling Spurs players Micky van de Ven and Conor Gallagher that “it was a clear foul, end of”, and the video assistant referee confirmed his on-field decision after reviewing the replays.

“Obviously, different speeds can make things look different,” Bankes added.

“In slow motion, it can look different to what you see live,” he added. “I get one look at it, and I was more than happy that the two hands on the back had enough impact and was an offence. I understand there’s going to be split opinions on it, but for me I’m still comfortable that is enough for a free kick.”

The defeat has left Tottenham four points above the relegation zone while Arsenal pulled four points ahead of Manchester City at the top of the Premier League.