Luton Town was promoted from the Championship to the Premier League for the first time in three decades. The league returned to Kenilworth Road, their home stadium which was their first home game this season. The newcomers hosted West Ham United, who are in fine form this season.
West Ham United continued their amazing win streak in the Premier League with another victory against Luton Town. The Hammers clearly dominated the Hatters, but the opposition was also good at times. But the game garnered controversy due to a referee decision that many felt was unfair to Luton.
EPL refereeing again draws scrutiny from fans in the West Ham game
The scoring opened with West Ham’s Jarrod Bowen in the 37th minute, and defender Kurt Zouma wrapped the victory in the 85th minute. Luton did manage to grab a consolation goal in the 92nd minute, thanks to Mads Juel Andersen.
It was in the 94th minute of the game when the ball went into West Ham’s box from a corner. It appeared to touch the hand of Hammers midfielder James Ward Prowse, with Luton calling for a penalty.
This deprived the chance for Luton to grab an exciting draw, and it visibly upset both the team and their fans.
Luton Town should've gotten a pen from this handball by JWP at the 94th min. 😲 pic.twitter.com/EhXaDb73A2
— FPL Zh0u (Joe) 🇲🇾 (@ZhouFPL) September 2, 2023
After the game, both Sky Sports pundits Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher expressed how they believed the penalty to Luton should have been awarded.
Gary said that the penalty decision should have been consulted with VAR. “For me, this is a penalty all day long. He turns his head away, James Ward-Prowse, to where the ball is and he has his arm up there. Honestly, I think it’s a penalty all day long. I think Paul Tierney should give it, if he doesn’t give it then I think VAR should ask him to go to the screen.”
Carragher agreed, saying, “I agree and I think it goes back to what we have now with VAR in terms of this high bar in terms of overturning the decision and almost wanting the referee to referee and make the decision – and unless it’s an absolute howler, VAR aren’t going to get involved.”
This is the latest in referees in the Premier League making mistakes, with last season also seeing many controversial decisions made. This has made many call into question the integrity of the Premier League’s refereeing.
West Ham continue early season momentum
West Ham meanwhile will be happy to get all three points. They are unbeaten in their first four games and are currently third in the Premier League. This is impressive for David Moyes’s side after losing star talisman Declan Rice to Arsenal this summer.
The Hammers started the season with a 1-1 draw against Bournemouth. They then mounted an impressive 3-1 win against Chelsea, before beating an impressive Brighton side 3-1 as well. Yesterday’s win was their third in a row, and the Hammers will be glad to start the season in an impressive way.
West Ham will have a more interesting challenge next game, as they host reigning Premier League and Champions League winners Manchester City on Saturday.
