Maresca demands refereeing consistency after Haaland derby goal ruled wrong
Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca has called for consistency in refereeing accountability after the governing body accepted that Erling Haaland’s match-winning goal in Sunday’s Manchester derby ought not to have counted.
VAR decision acknowledged after derby
- The refereeing body reviewed the decisive City goal and concluded that Enzo Fernandez had interfered with play during the move. The strike should therefore have been ruled out.
- Referees’ chief Howard Webb subsequently voiced regret over the VAR process surrounding the incident at Old Trafford.
- Maresca, however, said the admission revived memories of the January 2023 derby in which Manchester United beat City 2-1.
In that earlier meeting, Marcus Rashford ran on to a Casemiro pass from an offside position without making contact with the ball. City’s defenders were affected by his movement before Bruno Fernandes scored United’s 78th-minute equaliser.
Maresca was Pep Guardiola’s assistant at the time and said City did not receive a comparable acknowledgement from officials after that defeat.
Maresca questions differing responses
Speaking before Thursday’s League Cup meeting with Norwich City, Maresca said refereeing calls can work both for and against a side, but argued that the two derby incidents had been treated differently.
“It can go in your favour at times and against you at others,” Maresca said. “When I was here three years ago, the same thing happened against Manchester United and we lost that derby. That goal should not have stood. Nobody apologised then, and we are still waiting for one.”
The City head coach was also unhappy that the discussion had focused so heavily on Haaland’s goal rather than his side’s performance. City played around 70 to 75 minutes with 10 men after Phil Foden was sent off, yet still won the match.
“To centre the conversation on one incident after playing most of the game with 10 players is quite poor,” he said. “What the team did in the second half was unbelievable.”
City turn attention to Norwich and Sunderland
The controversy has arrived during an excellent opening to Maresca’s time at the Etihad Stadium. City have won each of their first five Premier League matches, and their ability to overcome the lengthy numerical disadvantage in the derby has added to the manager’s confidence in the squad.
Maresca said his approach would not alter for the League Cup, despite VAR not being used in its early rounds. City are expected to make changes when Norwich visit on Thursday evening, with the manager balancing his side’s strong league start against a demanding run of fixtures.
After the Norwich tie, City return to Premier League action at home to Sunderland on Sunday, when Haaland and his team-mates will seek to preserve their perfect domestic record.
