The governing body for English football referees, Professional Game Referees (formerly known as PGMO), has publicly acknowledged a mistake in the decision that awarded Manchester City a 1-0 win over Manchester United at Old Trafford. In a statement issued only a few hours after the match, Pro Ref confirmed that it had contacted United officials to admit an "error of judgment" and conceded that the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) should have prompted an on‑field review of Erling Haaland's decisive strike. According to Sky Sports News, United have accepted the apology but will not pursue any further action against the refereeing organisation, despite remaining deeply frustrated by the incident.
The club expressed appreciation for the efforts of former Premier League referee Howard Webb and the Pro Ref team in acknowledging and explaining the error. The controversy centres on Haaland's goal, which was initially ruled out for off‑side by the on‑field officials before being overturned by VAR.
The VAR officials concluded that Manchester United defender Patrick Dorgu had played Haaland on‑side. However, they also noted that Manchester City midfielder Enzo Fernández was in an off‑side position when he attempted to play the ball before it reached Haaland.
Although Fernández never actually touched the ball, his movement appeared to interfere with United defender Lisandro Martínez, an action that, under the Laws of the Game, should have resulted in the goal being disallowed. A Pro Ref spokesperson explained the situation in detail: "The on‑field decision was off‑side against Erling Haaland – that was checked by VAR and he was found to be in an on‑side position.
In the same attack, it was established that Enzo Fernández did not play the ball and therefore that makes any off‑side offence subjective; however, on this occasion, the VAR did not recognise the likely impact of his position and should have recommended an on‑field review. Contact has been made with Manchester United this evening to acknowledge what we deem is an error of judgement. A review of the incident will take place." Pro Ref, which oversees the four top men’s divisions, the National League, the Women's Super League and the U21 Premier League 2, is led by Howard Webb.
The body rebranded from PGMO to Professional Game Referees during the summer, aiming for greater transparency and consistency in officiating. The Premier League Match Centre posted on X that VAR had checked the referee's original call of "no goal for off‑side" and determined Haaland to be on‑side, recommending the goal be awarded.
The statement also stressed that while Fernández was in an off‑side position, he did not play the ball. This emphasis on Fernández's lack of touch seemed to shape the VAR narrative, despite replays showing that his presence disrupted Martínez's defensive line. The off‑side rule, however, is clear that a player can be penalised for off‑side even if he does not touch the ball, provided he interferes with an opponent or gains an advantage from his position.
Former United defender Gary Neville, commenting live for Sky Sports, argued that the VAR officials were "wrong" to allow the goal, a view echoed by many pundits. Neville predicted an apology from Pro Ref, stating: "There is no doubt that Enzo is attempting to play the ball and putting Lisandro Martínez off. It's a really strange one. They'll recognise they got that wrong." He later added on his podcast that the governing body seemed to be "ignoring the rule" and that their statement only deepened the controversy.
Lisandro Martínez himself said after the match that the goal should not have stood, lamenting the frequency of such high‑profile mistakes: "Every season the officials come to our club and spend an hour explaining the rules and they look so confident with that. Then after, five or six people doing this kind of mistake in the Premier League is unacceptable. We have to go home with this injustice." Former Manchester City defender Micah Richards dismissed the Match Centre's justification, calling it "nonsense" and insisting that Fernández was clearly attempting to play the ball.
"One hundred per cent he is," Richards told Sky Sports. "I think it's been a bad day for referees and VAR.
They got the Phil Foden decision wrong, and they got this decision wrong. How can you not say Enzo Fernández is challenging for the ball – of course he is!" Roy Keane added his perspective, arguing that Fernández was interfering with play and that United were punished for maintaining a solid defensive line: "Fernández is interfering with play. Basically, United have been punished for holding a good line.
When you are in that position, you are impacting the game. You're in the middle of the box, you're going for the ball. Their line is good.
Fernández is off‑side, and he goes to play the ball, so United are getting punished for good defending." Jamie Carragher also labelled the decision a "bad one," noting that the goal looked off‑side at first glance but was allowed because officials seemed overly focused on Haaland's on‑side status rather than Fernández's impact. He compared the incident to a previous VAR error involving Liverpool's Luis Diaz, concluding that the Manchester derby mistake was arguably worse due to the match’s global profile and the fact that it was the only goal of the game. In summary, Pro Ref has admitted that its VAR protocol failed to consider the full implications of Fernández's off‑side position, and it has issued an apology to Manchester United.
While United have accepted the apology without further recourse, the episode has sparked a broader debate about VAR consistency, the interpretation of off‑side interference, and the need for clearer guidelines to prevent similar controversies in future high‑stakes fixtures.