Pundits slam ‘wrong’ Newcastle United decision as Elliot Anderson denied goal against Nottingham Forest

The decision to rule out Elliot Anderson’s goal, his first for the club, caused plenty of controversy on Friday night. Nottingham Forest’s Felipe was adjudged to have accidentally deflected the ball into Sean Longstaff’s path, meaning the Newcastle midfielder was still in an offside position, despite not interfering with play during the initial cross into the box.

It was a decision that caused much debate during the game and one that dominated the analysis of the game on Match of the Day. Pundits Ashley Williams and Dion Dublin both agreed that the decision to disallow Anderson’s goal was the wrong call.

Williams said: “We’ve gone over it and tried to understand why it wasn’t given and what we understand is that it was a deflection from Felipe - when it clearly wasn’t, it was a clearance. It was a decent clearance as he was in the right position.”

Dublin said: “That’s not a deflection, it’s just good defending stopping the ball going into a dangerous area. They have give it as a deflection, I just don’t understand. It’s a really poor decision, it’s wrong.”

Following the game on Friday night, Gary Neville revealed he was ‘bemused’ by the decision, telling Sky Sports: “For me, he [Felipe] has definitely played that ball.

“I've been there many times as a defender, where I've obviously tried to clear it and it has not quite gone where I wanted it to. I'm a little bit bemused. There might be a lot cleverer people than me that will explain why that is a deflection and not a deliberate play.”