Most fans of English Premier League football would prefer incidences like this one go unwhistled, but the controversy over Howard Webb overlooking Marouane Chamakh's 30th minute hand ball comes when realizing some officials would have called it. As is, Howard Webb judged Chamakh's right hand to have unintentionally struck a ball played into the Arsenal area, allowing play to go on.
Manchester United Vs. Arsenal: Minor Controversy As Howard Webb Swallows Whistle On Marouane Chamakh’s (Unintentional) Hand Ball
The play came off a Manchester United corner, played in by Nani but immediately headed out. Was United played the ball back into the area Chamakh, standing at the end of the six yard box, whiffed on an attempted header only to have the ball strike his right hand. There’s no way the Arsenal striker could have been intentionally putting hand to ball. In missing the header, he obviously was misjudging where the ball even was.
So by the rule, Chamakh’s contact was not a foul. The contact was incidental, though for some players and fans, the hand ball that could have prevented a shot on goal, could have prevented a Manchester United player from running onto the ball, should have been a foul.
Better this way, though. It’s been an open, “full blooded” first 35 minutes, and although Howard Webb is notoriously tight with his whistles, that might be a good thing tonight. Ten minutes before halftime, Manchester United and Arsenal are still scoreless.
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