The opening round of the English Premier League witnessed a rare refereeing incident during the match between Chelsea and Crystal Palace that left fans and players alike stunned.
The game, held at Stamford Bridge in London, ended in a goalless draw despite Crystal Palace having a goal disallowed after a Video Assistant Referee (VAR) review.
Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze scored from a direct free kick outside the penalty area in the 13th minute, sending a powerful shot over the defensive wall and into Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sánchez’s net. However, referee Darren England overturned the goal following a VAR consultation.
The goal was disallowed because Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi did not maintain the required distance from Chelsea’s defensive wall, as stipulated by the English Football Association’s regulations. According to Rule 13, “when three or more players of the defending team form a wall, all attacking players must remain at least one yard (one meter) away from it.”
Since Guehi was closer than the prescribed distance at the moment of the kick, the situation was deemed a violation, and the VAR intervention was ruled correct. The Premier League issued a statement on X (formerly Twitter):
“After reviewing the clip with VAR, it was determined that the away player number 6 was less than one yard from the defensive wall at the moment of the shot. Therefore, a foul is awarded, the goal is disallowed, and an indirect free kick is granted to the opposing team.”
A Similar Case in La Liga with a Different Outcome
Meanwhile, in La Liga, a similar situation occurred during Espanyol vs. Atlético Madrid, but with a different outcome. Julián Álvarez scored a direct free-kick goal for Atlético Madrid, while teammates Thiago Almada and Jonny Cardozo were positioned near Espanyol’s defensive wall.
Spanish newspaper Marca noted:
“This time the goal was allowed despite a clear infringement under IFAB (International Football Association Board) rules, meaning the goal should have been disallowed.”
Espanyol ultimately overturned their deficit to secure a thrilling 2-1 victory, highlighting discrepancies in the application of set-piece rules across European leagues and sparking debate over refereeing consistency in similar free-kick situations
