Premier League explains VAR decision on Evanilson’s controversial winner against Arsenal
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The Premier League has issued an official statement explaining why Evanilson’s winning goal for Bournemouth against Arsenal was allowed to stand despite a VAR review, following strong protests from the Gunners’ players.
Arsenal took the lead at the Emirates through Declan Rice in the first half, but Bournemouth mounted a determined second-half comeback. Dean Huijsen equalised before Evanilson bundled in a scrappy winner to seal a dramatic 2-1 victory for the visitors.
The Brazilian striker’s goal sparked controversy, as several Arsenal players immediately appealed for handball. The incident was reviewed by VAR, but the on-field decision was upheld. The Premier League later clarified the outcome in a statement.
“The referee’s call of goal was checked and confirmed by VAR – with no conclusive evidence that Evanilson handled the ball before scoring,” the statement read.
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The result is a major setback for Mikel Arteta’s side, who are preparing for a must-win Champions League semi-final second leg against Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday. The defeat also compounds the frustration of another unsuccessful Premier League title challenge.
Liverpool were officially crowned Premier League champions last weekend following a dominant 5-1 win over Tottenham, securing their second league title in four years. Arsenal, despite pushing hard in the race, have now fallen short for a third consecutive season.
Speaking about Liverpool’s triumph, Arteta admitted it was difficult to watch their rivals lift the trophy.
“Yes, big time,” the Arsenal boss said when asked if seeing Liverpool win the league hurt. “I understand that it’s a team who have been more consistent, they’ve had the ingredients to win it and it’s been painful. I want to congratulate Liverpool and what they’ve done, the manner they’ve done it and how consistent they’ve been, and I think they fully deserved to win it.
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“They’ve been the better team, had the better attributes, had their squad available consistently and we are going to try again.
“They’ve had this distraction—contract negotiations with Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah, and Trent Alexander-Arnold—but they still had them on the pitch the whole time, which is positive.
“They are a club who, over the last 10 years, have been fighting for trophies and winning big trophies like the Champions League. They are deserved champions.”
Arsenal now turn their attention to Paris, where they will need to overturn a 1-0 deficit if they are to reach the Champions League final for the first time since 2006.
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