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Pat Nevin lambasts "joke" handball rule wording

It didn't quite match the excitement of the early parts of the tournament, but Liverpool fans won...
Raf Diallo
Raf Diallo

23.01 4 Jun 2019


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Pat Nevin lambasts "joke" handball rule wording


Raf Diallo
Raf Diallo

23.01 4 Jun 2019


Share this article


It didn't quite match the excitement of the early parts of the tournament, but Liverpool fans won't care.

The club have now won their sixth Champions League/European Cup after beating Tottenham in Saturday's final and the immediate future looks bright.

Ex-Chelsea winger Pat Nevin joined us to review the final.

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The Liverpool penalty within seconds of the start had an obvious bearing on the trajectory of the game.

"The dynamic of the game was shaped by that first goal. You get that goal, why should Liverpool come out and play at that massive, high tempo and be risky," he said.

"There's no need to do it so they just did it that way. I do think Liverpool would have had gears had they needed them."

And as Pat added, it was "quite hot down there as well" which impacted the tempo.

Handball

He also gave his take on the penalty awarded for the Moussa Sissoko handball which some had deemed harsh.

"I keep on reading that rule over and over and over again," said Pat.

"A lawyer could drive a coach and horses through it. It's a joke. The first part is the handball has to be deliberate. Full stop. Then 'you have to take these things into consideration'. That to me sounds like caveats.

"If No 1 is obviously and quantitatively true i.e. did you deliberately do it? Clearly, [Sissoko] didn't and no players generally do it.

"Then the other stuff's just caveats. So then the other stuff become subjective. In the modern way that it's being looked at, a lot of people think that's a penalty kick. If you put your hand up, there's a right good chance, you'll give away a penalty.

"So I think you accept it in the modern game. But I'm really looking forward to poring over the wording for next season which is going to be completely and utterly different."


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Champions League Liverpool Moussa Sissoko Off The Ball Pat Nevin Sissoko Handball Tottenham

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