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'Get rid of VAR' - should Henderson have seen red in FA Cup final?

Should Henderson have been sent off for handball?

Shamoon Hafez
BBC Sport football news reporter at Wembley Stadium

Crystal Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson was the centre of attention during Saturday's FA Cup final against Manchester City.

The England international, who superbly kept out Omar Marmoush's penalty by diving full stretch to his right among a string of fine saves, inspired the Eagles to a 1-0 win at Wembley.

But should the Palace number one have been on the pitch to make those vital interventions?

City defender Josko Gvardiol played a long ball over the top for Erling Haaland to chase on to and Henderson hesitated, before stretching out a hand outside the box to divert the ball away from the City striker.

As occurs with every decision, the video assistant referee (VAR) checked the incident and allowed play to continue without any sanction.

The explanation given was that the direction in which Haaland was going made it a possible - but not obvious - goalscoring opportunity.

Former Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney said on the BBC One coverage that it was "100% a red card" and called to "get rid of VAR".

What information do we collect from this quiz?

What are the considerations for denying an obvious goalscoring opportunity?

  • The distance between the offence and the goal

  • The direction of the play

  • The likelihood of keeping or gaining control of the ball

  • The local and number of defenders

Henderson's handball came just outside the box, pushing the ball away from goal and towards the corner flag.

Had he not got that touch, Haaland would have had the chance to control the ball and aim a strike towards goal, but Palace centre-back Maxence Lacroix had sprinted back to cover.

A goalkeeper handling the ball outside the box is not an automatic red card and VAR can only call the decision back for a dismissal, but decided Haaland was not denied a clear goalscoring opportunity.

City should have been given a free-kick outside the box, but referee Stuart Attwell failed to award it.

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