Why Rangers F.C. avoided a penalty for Emmanuel Fernandez’s handball against Dundee. United
Rangers averted a penalty for Emmanuel Fernandez’s handball because the VAR referee determined that the action did not match the criteria for a “clear and obvious” handball offense under current IFAB guidelines.
Here’s a synopsis of the match events, rules, and expert reactions:
1. VAR did not see Fernandez’s arm position as clearly “unnaturally bigger”
Will Ferry’s long toss goes over another player’s head and strikes Fernandez’s right arm.
Don Robertson, a VAR official, assessed it but determined the hand/arm:
Was not purposely moved towards the ball.
It might have been a natural position for Fernandez’s body movement.
Was not obviously making his body “unnaturally bigger”, which is necessary by the IFAB law to award a penalty.
As a result, Robertson did not send referee David Dickinson to the monitor, which typically indicates:
VAR did not believe the original “play on” call was a clear mistake.
2. The new, higher “handball threshold” also had a part.
Managers in the league have remarked that this season referees are:
Less likely to offer soft handballs.
Expect more visible arm movements or odd poses.
Dundee United’s manager, Jim Goodwin, even said:
“Earlier in the season, that could have been given…” “I believe the threshold has been raised.”
This greater criterion works against awarding borderline handballs, such as Fernandez’.
3. Referee and VAR determined that there was no intent.
Pundit Neil McCann justified the no-call.
“There is no intent…” “To impose a penalty would have been extremely unfair.”
A lack of intention does not necessarily rule out a handball, but it certainly influence how “unnatural” the movement is regarded.
4. Inconsistency throughout the league increases irritation.
Fans and analysts compared the event to:
Liam Scales’ penalty for Celtic vs Hibernian
Lewis Mayo’s penalty against Celtic.
Mats Knoester’s handball on the same night.
Some felt the Fernandez event was comparable to those, implying inconsistency.
But in this case, VAR simply did not believe it was “big enough” to overturn the no-call.
5. Dundee United did not strongly oppose the decision.
Jim Goodwin, who is typically angry about referees, remained calm and even stated that he would be “disappointed” if his own player was fined for that type of handball.
Despite the fact that fans and commentators were split, his reaction served to cool the dispute.
In summary: Why Rangers avoided the penalty.
Rangers did not get fined for Fernandez’s handball because:
VAR felt the hand was in a justifiable and natural position.
No purposeful movement towards the ball.
The incident did not match the higher handball standard.
It was not deemed a “clear and obvious error”
The referee’s original decision to play on was not deemed as improper enough to overturn.
All of these circumstances combined to allow Rangers to avoid a penalty for what many considered a “obvious” handball.
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