The Forest vs United game made for a great watch, with both sides evenly matched for the most part; however, former referee Mike Dean believes the outcome could and should have been very different.
What seemed to be on paper, a simple win for Ruben Amorim’s side due to Forest’s poor form this season, and coming off the back of a poor 2-0 loss to Bournemouth the week prior, was far from it
The clash between Dyche’s Forest and Amorim’s Manchester United ended in a 2-2 draw, which, upon reflection, seems like a fair result, as United controlled the game with 59% possession. At the same time, Forest mustered a 1.93 xG to United’s 1.12.
United played very poorly for the majority of the game; considering they were on a three-game win streak, it is hard to find a single standout performer from yesterday. Relying on a set-piece goal and a wonder strike from Amad, there weren’t many positives to take home in their rescue of a point.
However, with the recent news coming from Mike Dean, it seems that Man United should count themselves very lucky and be grateful for a point at the City Ground.
The ‘major error’ that favoured United
United opened the scoring, thanks to a brilliant header dispatched from Casemiro, as he latched onto a pinpoint corner from Bruno Fernandes. But the issue lies in the play leading up to the corner.
Forest’s young right back, Savona, chased down a loose ball that was heading out for a corner. In his attempts to keep it in play, he stumbled and evidently nudged the ball out for a corner that would give the away side the lead.
Savona was shocked when he saw the referee’s decision to give the corner, as he was adamant that he had kept the ball in play. Upon reflection, Mike Dean agreed with the player.
In his post-match interview, Dyche was furious with the decision, calling for a change in the use of VAR. “I can’t understand it, you’re an assistant referee and 70-odd yards away with a goal and a net in the way, but apparently you can see,” he claimed.
“Someone has got to overrule these decisions, just really quickly, only five seconds. For me, that’s five seconds of VAR: ‘Bang, that’s it, done, wrong decision’. With all the technology and all that’s at stake, particularly for us at Nottingham Forest after the start we’ve had, that’s a big moment.”
This was the second time in a week his side had conceded from a corner that they believed should not have been a corner to begin with, after Bournemouth found the opener from a similar situation in Forest’s last game.
Mike Dean on Sky Sports’ Soccer Saturday agreed with Dyche, stating that due to his position, the linesman shouldn’t be involved in the process, counting United lucky that the corner was given.
“100% he’s [the linesman] guessed. I mean, it’s not out of play. So he’s saying it is out. It’s clear it’s clearly in,” Dean said.
“It’s just a complete guess, and to look from 80 yards across the play and say that’s out of play. It’s impossible because you have two posts to look through and the defender’s foot. It’s just a guess 100%. As an official, you don’t want to get involved.
“He thinks it’s out, but factually, it’s in play. So he has just made a guess, and it’s a major error.”
Did the incident severely alter the way the game was going?
The game was relatively even in the first half, but with United having more shots on target and more possession, it is somewhat easy to say that a goal from them was coming, regardless of the corner incident.
However, Forest did create chances of their own, having a greater xG in the first half. Paired with Man United playing poorly for their recent standards, and Forest seeming to be dominating the game in the midfield with Anderson and Douglas Luiz, a case can definitely be made for Forest potentially taking the lead, which would have changed the way the game went.
Amorim said he was pleased with the effort from the players, as they demonstrated resilience after a slow start to the second half, during which they conceded two goals by the 50th minute. Dyche does raise a good point on the matter; however, it has happened many times before, and will happen more in the future.
With United just edging Forest in the game and their solid firepower on paper with the likes of Mbeumo on fire recently, the game more than likely would have had the same outcome.
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