Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher has waded in with his view on the Andy Carroll penalty that never was in the defeat to Everton this weekend.
Steve Bruce's side were left infuriated when on-field official Lee Mason did not spot a push from Drijbril Sidibe on the Newcastle forward, with their frustration multiplied when VAR did not overturn the decision.
A brace from Dominic Calvert-Lewin, either side of Fabian Schar's second-half effort, saw Newcastle fall to defeat against Everton at St James' Park, their first at home since the opening weekend of the season.
However, the manner of the result has certainly irked Newcastle and Bruce complained about a number of incidents that were missed - including the push on Carroll.
His views have now been echoed by ex-ref Gallagher, who admitted he was surprised that a penalty was not awarded in favour of the home side.
"I think it was a penalty. If you put two hands in the back of a player like that, you run a massive risk of giving a penalty away. I fully expected a penalty to be awarded," he told Sky Sports News.
The missed penalty was just one of a number of talking points on another controversial weekend for Premier League officials and the use of VAR, with the debate around the technology certainly not dissipating heading into 2020.
