Chris Sutton has suggested Marcus Rashford's 'dive' to win a controversial penalty against Nottingham Forest was the latest example of Manchester United gaining an unfair advantage from referees at Old Trafford.
It's the former Celtic and Chelsea striker's view that officials 'subconsciously' bow to pressure at the Theatre of Dreams. United were on the road to ruin at home to Forest on Saturday when Erik ten Hag's side stunningly found themselves 2-0 down inside four minutes.
Rashford, 25, played a crucial role in their comeback and assisted Christian Eriksen for the Red Devils' first of the afternoon before winning the penalty for Bruno Fernandes to convert and decide the match. However, Sutton has suggested Danilo's foul on the England forward should never have been given as a foul, adding the crowd's influence is a boon to United.
"Marcus Rashford dived, but because of the weight of pressure of the crowd at Old Trafford, that's why I believe Manchester United were awarded that penalty," said Sutton on the latest episode of the 'It's All Kicking Off' podcast.
READ MORE: Man Utd 'refuse to let Harry Maguire go on loan' with funds needed for late signings
"I just think that there is a weight of pressure which is put on them, they feel it. Stuart Attwell awarded the penalty and it was Rob Jones in the VAR.
"So I understand why Stuart Attwell awarded it in real time, but Rob Jones should be strong enough then to look at it and he had all the angles to see that Marcus Rashford clearly dived and this not a clear and obvious error as far as I'm concerned, that's utter rubbish. It's either a penalty or it's not a penalty. It was a dive, I think you agree with that. So therefore, it shouldn't have been awarded."
The challenge that won the Red Devils their penalty has split opinion online, with many confident Danilo clearly clipped Rashford's tight to send him to the turf.
Do you think Man United get more help at home than their major rivals? Let us know in the comments section below.
Sutton is far from the first to infer United get preferential treatment at home, with many pundits and rival managers suggesting in the past that Sir Alex Ferguson's teams frequently gleaned an edge over their opponents. However, others would argue such is part and parcel of playing away from home in the Premier League.
Podcast presenter Ian Ladyman made the counter-point that modern referees face a nigh-impossible task of attempting to officiate games where '22 players are all cheating.' The Daily Mail journalist didn't restrict that view to the present day, either, telling Sutton: "When you were a player, you were all cheating."
Follow the Daily Star on Threads
Many might have considered it just had United not been awarded a penalty after Wolves were denied what appeared to be a stonewall spot-kick due to an Andre Onana foul on Nathan Collins in their first match of the season. PGMOL admitted there was fault in that decision by suspending the team of officials responsible for the call, but there's been no such backlash this time.
Saturday's rise from the ashes was United's second win of the Premier League season and provided an instant response after succumbing 2-0 at Tottenham the previous week.
Source: Read Full Article