Former Premier League referee Chris Foy has provided an explanation for why Georginio Rutter had his goal disallowed in Leeds United’s victory over Bristol City on Saturday.
Foy, in his analysis of key refereeing decisions from the weekend on Sky Sports, discussed Rutter’s second-half goal attempt. The play in question originated from a corner, where Sam Byram’s volley on goal was saved by the goalkeeper, Max O’Leary, and the ball rebounded to Rutter, who was inside the six-yard box. Unfortunately, Rutter’s celebration was cut short by the linesman’s offside flag.
Rutter, who had missed a significant opportunity in the first half, appeared determined to score his first goal at Elland Road but was denied.
Foy went on to clarify the reasons for the disallowed goal. He pointed out that Rutter committed two offenses during the sequence. First, he was in the goalkeeper’s eyeline, which obstructed the goalkeeper’s ability to make a save. Second, Rutter was in an offside position when Byram took the initial shot and then made a clear attempt to play the ball after the rebound.
Foy explained, “Making a decision in a crowded penalty area is always challenging for the officials. When the ball is volleyed towards goal by Sam Byram, the eventual goal scorer, Georginio, is positioned just beyond the second-last opponent – thus in an offside position. Although he doesn’t touch Byram’s initial shot, he makes a clear attempt to play the ball and clearly affects the Bristol City goalkeeper’s ability to make the save.”
Foy continued, “There are two offside offenses here. The first is Georginio’s initial action that clearly affects the Bristol City goalkeeper’s attempt to save, and the second is his offside position when he gains an advantage for the resultant tap-in. This was a correct decision by the officials.”
While it remains uncertain whether Rutter was offside due to the tight nature of the call, it’s clear that VAR would have scrutinized the decision with multiple lines drawn to reach a conclusion. In the Championship, however, officials have to make split-second decisions.
It’s disappointing that such a marginal decision cost Rutter his first home goal for Leeds, but fortunately, it didn’t affect Daniel Farke’s team’s three points.
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