Key Points
- The Premier League’s Key Match Incidents Panel has confirmed that a VAR mistake was made in Manchester City’s 3-3 draw with Everton.
- The panel agreed Everton should have been awarded a penalty after Bernardo Silva was judged to have held Merlin Rohl at a corner.
- The incident came in the 85th minute while Everton led 3-2, before Jeremy Doku’s stoppage-time equaliser for City.
- The panel unanimously ruled that there was “a clear, sustained holding offence” that continued as the corner was taken and the ball came into play.
- This is the 23rd VAR error confirmed in the Premier League this season.
- Reports say the decision could have affected the title race because Arsenal are still chasing Manchester City at the top of the table.
- Everton manager David Moyes said the decision had left him “absolutely amazed”, according to The Standard.
The Premier League’s (North London News) May 16, 2026, Key Match Incidents Panel has admitted that a mistake was made in the Everton against Manchester City match, with the panel ruling that Everton should have been awarded a penalty before City rescued a 3-3 draw.
What happened at Hill Dickinson Stadium?
Liverpool-based coverage is not involved here; this incident took place at Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium, where the hosts led 3-2 in the 85th minute after a corner was won.
As reported by BBC Sport, referee Michael Oliver and VAR official Paul Howard did not award a penalty after Bernardo Silva pulled Merlin Rohl to the ground.
The VAR check was quickly completed and the on-field decision stood, but the KMI panel later concluded that the holding offence was continuing as the corner was taken.
Jeremy Doku then scored a stoppage-time equaliser in the 96th minute, which allowed Manchester City to leave with a point rather than a defeat.
The panel’s verdict matters because it suggests Everton were denied the chance to go 4-2 up from the spot, which may have ended the match as a contest.
According to The Standard, the five-member panel was unanimous in its view that the officials got the decision wrong.
Why does this matter for Arsenal?
The story has drawn attention because the result could still shape the Premier League title race between Arsenal and Manchester City.
The Express reported that the error was described as one that
“hurt Arsenal and benefitted Manchester City”,
because a different outcome for Everton could have altered how many points City need in the final run-in.
The Standard reported that if Everton had won after being awarded the penalty, Arsenal would have been three points ahead of City, rather than needing to guard against a tighter finish.
Arsenal’s position remains strong, but the reporting shows how a single refereeing call can affect the arithmetic at the top of the table.
The KMI panel’s admission does not change the result, but it does confirm that the decision was wrong and that it had potential competitive consequences.
That is why the issue has been framed not just as a refereeing error, but as one with possible title-race impact.
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What did the panel say?
BBC Sport reported that the KMI panel unanimously agreed
“a clear, sustained holding offence”
that it continued as the corner was taken and the ball came into play.
That finding directly contradicted the interpretation given during the match, when VAR decided the contact had ended before the ball was live.
The panel’s ruling, therefore, confirms that the original decision should have gone the other way.
The same BBC report said the confirmed mistake takes the season’s VAR error tally to 23, which is 35% higher than at the same stage last season.
It also said the total remains below the 30 mistakes recorded at the same point in the 2023-24 season.
That broader context has added weight to the latest decision because it suggests the level of official error remains a live issue across the league.
How did Everton react?
The Standard reported that Everton manager David Moyes was left highly frustrated by the decision and said he was “absolutely amazed”.
His reaction reflected the feeling that Everton had been denied a decisive moment while leading the match.
The incident also stands out because Everton is reported to be the only club not to have benefited from VAR this season.
BBC Sport said this was the third time Everton should have been awarded a penalty through VAR this season.
The earlier incidents cited were a 1-0 home defeat to Arsenal and a 2-1 loss at West Ham United.
That pattern has made Everton’s grievance more serious because it suggests a repeated failure, not just a one-off call.
What was the wider league context?
The BBC report said three additional VAR errors were confirmed by the KMI panel, taking the season total to 23.
One of those involved a penalty decision in Bournemouth’s 3-0 win over Crystal Palace, where the panel said a penalty should have been overturned.
This wider set of rulings shows that the Everton incident was part of a broader batch of retrospective decisions, not an isolated review.
For the title race, the most important point is that the panel’s ruling sharpened the debate around how much a single official mistake can matter late in the season.
As The Standard noted, if Arsenal and City end up level on points, goal difference and then goals scored may decide the title.
That means any result swing, even from one missed penalty, can have knock-on effects when the margins are so thin.
Why is this story being discussed now?
The timing matters because the Premier League season is entering its decisive phase, and title calculations are becoming more sensitive.
The panel’s admission came after the match, but its significance lies in what it says about the accuracy of high-stakes decisions during the run-in.
That is why the story has been framed around Arsenal, even though the actual match was between Everton and Manchester City.
This is also a story about accountability.
The KMI panel did not reverse the result, but it did publicly record that the officials got the call wrong.
For clubs and supporters, that acknowledgement can matter almost as much as the decision itself because it confirms the complaint was valid.
Background of this development
The Key Match Incidents Panel is the Premier League’s retrospective review body for major refereeing decisions.
Its role is to assess key incidents after matches and determine whether VAR and the referee made the correct call.
In this case, the panel examined whether Bernardo Silva’s challenge on Merlin Rohl met the threshold for a penalty during the corner at Everton’s ground.
The decision became more politically charged because Manchester City’s draw helped keep pressure on Arsenal in the title race.
When a missed penalty may alter the points gap at the top of the table, the review carries consequences beyond a single match.
That is why this incident has been treated as more than a routine refereeing correction.
Prediction for Arsenal fans
For Arsenal supporters, the practical effect is limited because the result will not be changed, but the psychological effect may be stronger.
The admission reinforces the sense that the title race can be influenced by incidents outside the team’s control, which may increase scrutiny on every remaining match.
It may also intensify debate around VAR if Arsenal finish just short of Manchester City or if the title goes to goal difference.
For the wider audience, especially Premier League followers, this development is likely to keep refereeing standards under close examination.
It may also fuel calls for clearer VAR thresholds and more transparency in post-match rulings.
