Referee Simon Hooper, video assistant referee Michael Salisbury, and assistant VAR Richard West have been omitted from this weekend's Premier League fixtures following a controversial decision during Manchester United's 1-0 win over Wolves.
The incident occurred in the final minute of injury time when United goalkeeper Andre Onana collided with Wolves' Sasa Kalajdzic and Craig Dawson. Replays showed Onana missed the ball entirely, but Hooper waved away protests and the VAR check upheld the on-field decision.
Wolves manager Gary O'Neil revealed that Jon Moss, head of the Premier League's elite group of officials, apologised after the match, admitting it was a clear penalty. O'Neil said: 'Fair play to him for coming straight out and apologising and saying it was a blatant penalty.'
Former referee Dermot Gallagher criticised the decision, stating: 'When you look at the images, I feel the referee on the field should get it... Onana crashes into the player and it just has to be given as a penalty.'
This is the second time Salisbury has been dropped, following a similar error during Brighton's defeat to Tottenham in April. Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag defended the decision, claiming Onana did not interfere with the play.
