BBC’s Chris Sutton expressed his disappointment with Fabian Schär, the Newcastle United center-back, following a controversial incident during the weekend. The incident occurred when Newcastle was awarded a penalty in a match against Wolves, as Hwang Hee-Chan was deemed to have fouled Schär in the penalty area just before halftime.
Callum Wilson successfully converted the penalty, continuing his flawless record from the spot for Newcastle. However, questions arose regarding the decision, and VAR scrutinized it thoroughly.
Both Schär and Hwang were vying for the same ball, and although Schär reached it first, Hwang’s attempt to clear the ball resulted in contact with Schär instead. This is how it seemed in real-time and was the basis for Anthony Taylor’s decision to award the penalty.
Upon closer inspection, it became evident that the contact was minimal, and, if anything, Schär seemed to initiate it by deliberately stepping across Hwang to make contact. Hwang even refrained from going for the ball.
The argument was that since it appeared to be a clear penalty in real-time, Taylor made the correct decision on the field, and VAR couldn’t overturn it. Nevertheless, the VAR process seemed to take an extended period to reach this conclusion.
Chris Sutton disagrees with this explanation and voiced his grievances on BBC 5 Live. He criticized Schär for his actions and implied that he had dived to win the penalty, referencing it as a “Swiss Roll.” Sutton believed that Schär, being a talented player, should refrain from such actions, and he urged him to stop simulating.
Although it may be considered somewhat harsh to label it a dive, it is acknowledged that Schär was actively seeking contact and may have embellished the situation. Nevertheless, Sutton humorously mentioned that an award is an award, suggesting Schär may find some satisfaction in it.
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