Wolves manager Gary O’Neil was visibly frustrated on the touchline when VAR decided against awarding his side a crucial penalty during their match against West Ham at the London Stadium on Monday night. At the London Stadium, things could not have gone any worse for O’Neil’s Wolves, who are in urgent need of a victory in order to avoid relegation.

What Happened Between West Ham Vs Wolves?

West Ham went ahead in the first half with Tomas Soucek heading home from a corner to put them 1-0 up. Wolves thought they were awarded a chance to level it when Emerson Palmieri was accused of fouling Goncalo Guedes inside the penalty area. However, the referee dismissed the appeal, and VAR ruled in his favor, as they upheld the on-field decision.

Chaotic Scenes at the End of West Ham vs Wolves 💥

Lemina 🇬🇦 and Bowen 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 the main culprits pic.twitter.com/FjzB2RvWcx

— Every Premier League Club (@EveryPremier) December 9, 2024

Premier League Issues Official Statement

Explaining the decision, the Premier League match centre tweeted: “The referee’s call of no penalty for the challenge by Emerson on Guedes was checked and confirmed by VAR, deeming that the contact was outside the box.”

#WHUWOL – 68’

The referee’s call of no penalty for the challenge by Emerson on Guedes was checked and confirmed by VAR, deeming that the contact was outside the box.

— Premier League Match Centre (@PLMatchCentre) December 9, 2024

Wolves did not let this situation linger as they managed to draw the game minutes after the Emerson incident through Matt Doherty’s half-volley. West Ham did not let the situation drag further and scored a good goal from Jarrod Bowen which again put them in front.

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An Add-On In Struggles, Another Penalty Shout For Wolves

The frustration didn’t end there for O’Neil. Just before the final whistle, Wolves had another penalty shout when Konstantinos Mavropanos appeared to step on the foot of Jean-Ricner Bellegarde inside the box. The challenge occurred during the build-up to a missed shot from Tommy Doyle, but once again, VAR chose not to intervene. Sky Sports co-commentator Andy Hinchcliffe remarked, “It was a completely unnecessary challenge from Konstantinos Mavropanos. He’s so lucky to get away with it”

Should Bellegarde 🇫🇷 have had a Penalty for this challenge by Mavropanos 🇬🇷 🤔

2 Decisions Have Gone Against Wolves Now pic.twitter.com/FMH8tJntHt

— Every Premier League Club (@EveryPremier) December 9, 2024

Premier League’s Official Statement

The Premier League match centre wrote: “The referee’s call of no penalty for the challenge by Mavropanos on Bellegarde was checked and confirmed by VAR, who deemed the referee’s call was not clear and obviously wrong.”

#WHUWOL – 83’

The referee’s call of no penalty for the challenge by Mavropanos on Bellegarde was checked and confirmed by VAR, who deemed the referee’s call was not clear and obviously wrong.

— Premier League Match Centre (@PLMatchCentre) December 9, 2024

Gary O’Neil Left Furious

O’Neil, while still fuming that Mavropanos made a foul in preparation to the strike, vented his frustration over how his team had conceded during this match. The game may even have been worse had Wolves conceded had Mohammed Kudus scored two other correctly ruled out goals, being offside, this in the second half.

What Does Gary O’Neil Have To Say?

Speaking to BBC, O’Neil said: “I think there’s four. I don’t think it’s a corner, the corner they score from. I think it comes back off [Aaron] Wan-Bissaka,” he said. “There’s a blatant foul in the build up to West Ham’s second goal on [Santiago] Bueno in the middle of the box, unbelievably blatant. Really surprised that wasn’t given first then checked“

“Then the penalty is a blatant penalty, Emerson on a yellow card, tracking back, has a big shove into the back of Guedes which causes him to stand on ball. Small contact but enough to make Jean-Ricner Bellegarde fall over. Disappointed they didn’t go our way but we have our own battles to fight.”

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The 2-1 defeat left Gary O’Neil under considerable pressure, as his side remains in a perilous position near the bottom of the Premier League table.