Craig Burley has criticised the pundits who claimed Man Utd should not have had a penalty vs PSG (Image: ESPN/BT SPORT)
Former Chelsea midfielder Burley was speaking following Manchester United’s historic Champions League last-16 win over Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday.
United struck deep into second-half stoppage time through a Marcus Rashford penalty to win the second leg 3-1 on the night and go through to the quarter-finals on away goals.
The penalty was awarded after VAR adjudged PSG defender Presnel Kimpembe to have blocked Diogo Dalot’s shot with his arm.
Three former Manchester United players, Michael Owen, Rio Ferdinand and Owen Hargreaves were working as pundits for BT Sport for the match in the U.K.
Michael Owen says the penalty decision during PSG vs Man Utd was completely wrong (Image: BT SPORT)
And all three claimed VAR was wrong and a penalty should not have been awarded against PSG.
Ex-England striker Owen said: “Well I’ll know they’ll be people out there that think it was a penalty.
“But for me, with a neutral head on, it’s not a penalty in a million years.
“The hand hasn’t gone up, the arm hasn’t gone up. He’s turned his back, his arm is not in an unnatural position.
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Rio Ferdinand believed PSG were unlucky to give a penalty away against Man Utd (Image: BT SPORT)
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Craig Burley claimed 90 percent of people in the U.K. do not have a clue about the handball law (Image: ESPN)
I’ll tell you what, 90 per cent back in the U.K. haven’t got a scooby, they just play along
ESPN pundit Craig Burley
“No it’s not a penalty for me and I don’t think it is for anybody in this room.”
Ferdinand could see why the decision was made but still did not agree, commenting: “I don’t think it’s a penalty but I would say turning your back as a defender, you’re taught as a defender don’t turn your back.
“You get punished for doing things like that and that’s the only way I can see it. I don’t think it’s a penalty.”
Hargreaves simply said: “I think you’ll struggle to find any football player that’s played that thinks that’s a penalty.”
However, over in the USA, Burley and his ESPN colleagues had a completely different verdict.
Burley said of the penalty: “They can have no complaints about Kimpembe.”
Presenter Dan Thomas interrupted, pointing out what the English-based pundits had said, responding: “That’s the thing, there is a big debate going on, certainly some pundits back in the U.K. are saying it’s not a penalty.”
But Burley wholeheartedly disagreed and tore into what the likes of Owen, Ferdinand and Hargreaves had to say.
“I’ll tell you what, 90 per cent back in the U.K. haven’t got a scooby, they just play along,” the Scot said.
“Let’s be honest, it’s a penalty alone for the arm coming out and turning your back. It’s cowardly.
“As a kid, whether it’s going to hit you in the face or the chest or somewhere a bit more painful, wherever it is, you’ve got to take it.
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All the ESPN FC pundits on Wednesday agreed Man Utd were rightly given a penalty against PSG (Image: ESPN)
“There’s nothing in the laws of the game that says you should be raising your hands to protect yourself when it’s going to hit you, and certainly not when you’re turning your back completely on that ball. So there’s no complaints there.”
Burley was not alone, with former West Ham goalkeeper Shaka Hislop concurring with what he said.
“If Kimpembe knows a shot is coming in and he stands with his arms out wide, as a goalkeeper would, and it strikes his arm, he can have no complaints when the referee points to the spot,” Hislop said.
“It’s a penalty, all day every day.”
Liverpool legend Steve Nicol was also against the England-based pundits.
Former Premier League referee Peter Walton believed a penalty was the correct decision (Image: BT SPORT)
Nicol said: “As soon as you turn your back, you lose control. So he has no excuse.
“If he stays solid, he’s a good five yards away from the strike, if you stay solid and you keep your hands by your side and you’re in control of what’s coming, regardless of whether it’s going to hit your face or not, you’re in control.”
From a referee’s perspective, former Premier League official Peter Walton believed the right decision was made on the night.
“For me, that’s a handball,” Walton said.
“He hasn’t tried to get his arm out of the way, he’s turned his back, hasn’t taken responsibility for his arm, it’s a penalty kick.”
United will discover their quarter-final opponents at the draw in Nyon on March 15.