‘On point’ - Newcastle United co-owner’s cheeky VAR jibe guaranteed to leave Arsenal raging

Newcastle United co-owner Mehrdad Ghodoussi has reacted to the club’s 1-0 win over Premier League title challengers Arsenal at St James’ Park.

Anthony Gordon’s goal in the second half separated the two sides but the evening wasn’t without its controversy with a lot of post-match talk centered around referee Stuart A ttwell and VAR.

While it was debated whether or not Kai Havertz should have been sent off for a reckless tackle on Sean Longstaff, the main incident was still to come when Gordon put United in front.

VAR combined three checks into one, first checking if Joe Willock had kept the ball in play during the build up. Those at Stockley Park then looked at a possible foul byJoelinton and Gabriel before seeing if Gordon was offside.

The check went on for five minutes but United’s winner was confirmed. Gunners boss Mikel Artera branded the decision as an “absolute disgrace” and “embarrassing”.

Now, it’s hard to know if this post was tongue-in-cheek by Ghodoussi or he was indeed serious but either way, it created some amusement among Newcastle fans.

Posting on Instagram, Ghodoussi uploaded a photo of him sat next to England manager Gareth Southgate with the caption “VAR was on point tonight 🙌🏼🖤🤍🙌🏼 @nufc #nufc #garethsouthgate”

There was, however, no doubt over the tone of Ghodoussi’s post on X, formerly of Twitter, when he shared the iconic dressing room photo.

He said: “What a win, another incredible performance. These boys are gladiators.”

Eddie Howe’s side moved to within three points of the Premier League top four by beating Arsenal and also extended their unbeaten league run to seven matches.

United face Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League on Tuesday before making the long trip to the South Coast to take on AFC Bournemouth next weekend.