Newcastle United goalkeeper, Nick Pope has hit out at Cristiano Ronaldo and Manchester United over the Portuguese’s disallowed goal for Manchester United during their Premier League clash on Sunday.
The England goalkeeper insisted referee Craig Pawson’s decision to cancel Ronaldo’s goal was the right one.
Ronaldo and his United teammates were convinced they had broken the deadlock in the second half after Fabian Schar touched the ball back to the goalkeeper to take a free kick.
But as Pope stood there and appeared to be waiting for the referee’s instructions, Ronaldo nipped in and dribbled the ball a few yards before finishing into an empty net.
Referee Pawson immediately called back the ball and ruled out Ronaldo’s effort, despite huge protests from the Red Devils.
“The free-kick was slightly in the wrong place and obviously Fabby’s [Schar] rolled it back to me and walked off,’’ Pope told Chronicle Live.
“I think you know by everyone’s body language that you know he’s not meaning to take a free-kick.
“I think the referee sorted it out quickly and fair play to him for making the right decision and squashed it straight away.”
The match, however, ended goalless at Old Trafford as both teams could not find the back of the net.
