KMI Panel Backs Referee and VAR Decision to Deny Amad Diallo Penalty at Bournemouth

The Premier League's Key Match Incidents Panel cleared referee Stuart Attwell and VAR Craig Pawson of error over their decision not to award Manchester United a penalty for Bournemouth defender Adrien Truffert's challenge on Amad Diallo during the sides' 2-2 draw on March 21. The ruling, published on April 2, closed out a controversy that had prompted United to file a formal complaint with PGMOL and reignited long-running questions about consistency in the VAR era.

The incident came on 67 minutes with United leading 1-0. Diallo received the ball inside the Bournemouth area, and Truffert placed both hands on the winger's upper body as he moved toward goal. Attwell, positioned close to the challenge, waved play on immediately. VAR Pawson then reviewed the footage and confirmed the original call, concluding that "the contact was not sufficient for a foul." Bournemouth broke directly from the resulting phase of play, and Ryan Christie equalised within 27 seconds.

The KMI panel, which reviews the most significant officiating decisions each week using a panel of five former top-level referees and other experts, was unanimous in backing Pawson's VAR verdict: the contact between Truffert and Diallo did not meet the threshold for a clear and obvious error, the only standard by which VAR can overturn an on-field call. That narrow standard is central to how the system operates. Because VAR is not empowered to simply find the better answer, it can only intervene where the referee's call is plainly and demonstrably wrong. The panel agreed it was not.

Where the findings carried a sharper edge for Attwell was on the question of his original decision. Two of the panel's five members concluded that Truffert's contact should have been judged a foul at the time, meaning the majority, though not all, considered the on-field call correct. That internal split, unusual to see made public, is exactly the kind of transparency the KMI process is designed to provide.

The outcome deepened the grievance at Old Trafford because of what followed eleven minutes later. At the 78th minute, Harry Maguire held Evanilson to the ground in what Attwell judged to be a denial of an obvious goal-scoring opportunity. Maguire was sent off and Bournemouth were awarded a penalty, which Junior Kroupi converted to level at 2-2. Michael Carrick described the asymmetry as "baffling," and Bruno Fernandes said bluntly: "Either one is a penalty and the other one too or none of them is a penalty." The KMI panel addressed the Maguire red card separately and upheld it.

The distinction the panel drew between the two incidents rests on the degree of force applied and the direction of travel of both players. Truffert's contact was deemed normal jostling; Maguire's grip pulled Evanilson off his line of run with no attempt to challenge for the ball. Former referee Mark Clattenburg had offered a similar verdict in the days after the match, arguing the contact on Diallo was "slight and not consistent with his fall."

For United, the ruling settles the formal question but does little to address the practical damage: a 2-2 draw that left them third in the Premier League, having held what they viewed as a two-goal lead within their grasp. The KMI process cannot restore points, but its willingness to acknowledge the internal disagreement over Attwell's original call at least ensures the record reflects the full picture.