Newcastle vs Chelsea: No Penalty for Gordon Foul?

Chelsea, who really couldn’t keep up The Magpies before halftime, looked different after the break. Their revival was sparked by a world-class moment from Reece James, who curled a perfect free kick over the fence and into the corner of Aaron Ramsdale’s goal. The visiting team’s confidence soared, while Newcastle, who were previously comfortable, began to fall back and the match opened up.

However, controversy then occurred in the middle of the second half. Gordon chased a loose ball into the penalty box and came face to face with Trevoh Chalobah. Defender The Blues it butted Gordon with body check strong, until sang winger bounced towards the billboard. St. James’ Park exploded, players surrounded the referee, VAR went straight to work. However, to many people’s surprise, a penalty was not awarded.

The Premier League then explained via the X (formerly Twitter) account @PLMatchCentre: “The referee’s decision not to award Newcastle a penalty was reviewed and confirmed by VAR — with Chalobah’s contact on Gordon assessed as a protective measure [bola] from the side, with the ball still in play distance.”