Fulham manager Alvaro Arbeloa has suggested that Manchester United received favourable treatment in Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Craven Cottage because of the VAR controversy over Erling Haaland’s winner in the Manchester derby.
Fulham went ahead in the 63rd minute after Lisandro Martinez turned into his own net, though United rescued a point late on as Matheus Cunha’s effort deflected past Bernd Leno in the 89th minute.
Both sides wasted chances in a game that was sluggish at times, though there were no particularly controversial calls made by either referee Peter Bankes or the VAR team.
Nevertheless, Arbeloa complained about the refereeing, including a decision to award Harry Maguire a free-kick near halfway just 35 seconds before the equalising goal.
“We were so close. So, so close. We were a little bit unlucky again. We knew it would be difficult against this big team. Also, we knew what happened last week,” said Arbeloa after the full-time whistle.
“We have seen what the referee have been doing in all the matches, so it was a difficult game. And we were unlucky.
“You can see before they scored, the foul against Maguire; it’s a guy who is 100 kilos. Every decision was for them and I knew after the game against Man City that they [would not] let Manchester United lose here,” he said.
Arbeloa was referring to last week’s incident in the Manchester derby, where Erling Haaland’s winning goal was incorrectly awarded. Pro Ref later issued an apology to Manchester United, with VAR assistant Matt Donohue stood down for this weekend’s games.
Sunday’s draw was enough to take Fulham out of bottom spot in the Premier League, with the Cottagers climbing into 19th, above Tottenham on goal difference. Their next game comes after the three-week international break, when they will face newly promoted Ipswich at Portman Road on Saturday, 10 October.
