The Premier League’s Key Match Incidents panel has ruled that Arsenal should have been awarded a late penalty against Aston Villa and Ian Maatsen should have been sent off.
Villa were beaten 1-0 by the defending champions at Villa Park on 31 August, with Bukayo Saka scoring the only goal after 59 minutes.
However, there was controversy deep into stoppage time when Maatsen challenged Bruno Guimarães inside the Villa penalty area.
Referee Jarred Gillett allowed play to continue and VAR James Bell did not recommend an on-field review.
The independent KMI panel has now unanimously ruled both decisions were wrong.
Ian Maatsen should have been sent off
Maatsen made contact with Guimarães’ standing leg without winning the ball.
The five-person panel voted 5-0 that a penalty should have been awarded and also unanimously determined VAR should have intervened because the decision represented a clear and obvious error.
The panel said:
“A penalty should have been awarded on-field for Maatsen’s reckless challenge.”
Maatsen had already been booked in the 96th minute before the penalty incident occurred two minutes later.
The panel therefore concluded the challenge should have brought a second yellow card and red.
The Premier League has introduced weekly publication of its KMI findings for 2026/27 in an attempt to increase transparency around refereeing and VAR decisions. The panel contains three former players or coaches alongside representatives from the Premier League and Pro Ref.
Sky Sports has also released footage of the Maatsen challenge VAR failed to overturn.
The mistake ultimately did not affect the result, with Arsenal already leading through Saka and holding on for all three points.
Our Aston Villa 0-1 Arsenal match report covered Villa’s improved performance despite their second consecutive Premier League defeat.
For Maatsen, the KMI ruling confirms Villa were fortunate to finish the game with 11 players.
