‘Something has to change’: Tottenham defender Eric Dier insists controversial new handball rule is a ‘massive problem’ after England star was latest to be penalised for injury-time penalty in Newcastle draw
- Eric Dier conceded a late penalty in Tottenham’s 1-1 draw against Newcastle
- He was adjudged to have handled the ball after a header from Andy Carroll
- But even Toon boss Steve Bruce felt the spot-kick shouldn’t have been given
Eric Dier has urged FIFA to change the controversial handball rule that saw him concede a late penalty in Tottenham’s 1-1 draw against Newcastle on Sunday.
Dier was adjudged to have handled an Andy Carroll header with his outstretched arm after jumping to beat the Newcastle forward to the ball. Callum Wilson converted the resulting penalty to steal a point for Newcastle.
But even Toon boss Steve Bruce said the spot-kick shouldn’t have been awarded and now Dier has spoken out on the incident for himself.
Eric Dier conceded a penalty for handling Andy Carroll’s header as Spurs drew with Newcastle
Dier says the new handball rule has to be amended and even rival boss Steve Bruce agreed
‘Everyone is on the same page, something has to change,’ Dier told Football Focus. ‘In my case, if you look at it as a whole, the foul leading up to the free-kick, the distance between me and Andy Carroll, the fact that I get pushed in my back which people are not really talking about.
‘The push in my back is what makes my arm go up, that is a completely natural reaction and if someone does touch you like that, your normal reaction is to go like that.
‘Even without the push, he is less than a metre behind me and I don’t really know what more you can do.
‘You cannot jump without your hands, you cannot defend without using your arms to balance and move so it is what it is. It is a massive problem, not just mine – there were many last weekend.’
Mourinho stormed down the tunnel as Newcastle snatched a point with the late penalty
Spurs boss Jose Mourinho stormed off down the tunnel when Newcastle scored their penalty and refused to give his thoughts in his post-match interview because he felt he would get fined if said what truly thought of the decision.
‘We had a situation that we lost two points but I’m not going to comment on it… if I want to give some money away, I’ll give to charity, not to the FA,’ Mourinho said.
Tottenham face Chelsea in Carabao Cup later on Tuesday and then meet Maccabi Haifa in their Europa League play-off encounter on Thursday.