In defence of Daniel Munoz

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Woodman was hurt, the ball fell to Munoz. As the Palace defender took aim, Woodman hauled himself off the turf and scrambled to cover his goal despite the pain only to see the ball loop over his head and into the back of her net. Confusion reigned, conversations were had, but the goal stood. Referee Andy Madley had exercised his discretion and determined Woodman was not seriously injured and it was not a head injury, so play was free to continue. But as Palace had enjoyed a spell of pressure, the nervousness and emotion understandably took over. As the ball went out for a throw, Munoz sought to take it only for a home supporter to throw a ball back towards the pitch which struck Munoz on the back of the head. The cheers were just as loud again. To complicate matters, Woodman has an affinity with Palace. He spent his early years with the club’s academy and was considered a prospect before joining Newcastle United when his dad, Andy, moved to Newcastle as a coach. Woodman junior made the move to the North East. But he spoke to Sky Sports after the game about his fervent support for his hometown club. “I’m a massive fan,” he said. “But I wanted to try to help the team as much as I can. “The grass was really dry and my knee just got stuck in the ground. I felt pain in the inside of my knee. I was unsure what to do, I didn’t know whether to get back up and try to hobble to the goal or stay down.” Had Palace taken advantage of a situation or was it simply unfortunate for Woodman? As far as Oliver Glasner, the Palace manager, was concerned, it was just an unfortunate situation that Madley handled appropriately. “No (it was not perfectly OK for Munoz to score),” he said in his post-match press conference, before adding that the defender was unaware of exactly what was happening. “I discussed it with fourth official, (Liverpool manager) Arne Slot and (captain) Virgil can Dijk. We watched it back. “It’s good from this side, if Sarr hits his head, it’s clear the referee has to stop the game immediately. But he (Woodman) made the save with his leg then the ball went to Munoz. He (Woodman) tries to stand up and in this moment, Munoz takes the finish and the ‘keeper raises his arm. “He (Munoz) didn’t really see it, it was more or less the same time and then it was a goal. The ref has to stop if he believes it is a serious injury. But the ‘keeper could end the game. In this situation, to demand the ref has to stop can be very dangerous for future. “Every set play the goalkeeper is involved in is a duel. If he clears the ball with his arm, stays on the grass, and the ref stops play you will never get a second phase. This wouldn’t be the best for football. It was not so clear, but I think it was the right decision.” Glasner revealed he had considered restoring Liverpool’s two-goal lead had Woodman been forced off with an injury, telling his players the same after those conversations with Slot and Van Dijk. “But Munoz (shot) at the same time (as the) goalkeeper raised (his hand), so I think it was right.” Palace produced an expected goals total of 2.26, but as they have throughout the season, failed when it mattered most. Had they instead converted chances with Yeremy Pino shooting over and Jorgen Strand Larsen hitting the post (though potentially offside), perhaps there would have been more of a furore over the goal. Ultimately, whether the decision to award it was the correct one, Munoz did nothing wrong. Whether he realised Woodman was down is unclear, but he has been given the benefit of the doubt by his manager and Liverpool defender Andrew Robertson. And there was no foul committed, no serious injury and no head injury. The responsibility lies with the referee to stop the game, and there is no reason to disbelieve that Palace would have acted in a sporting manner had Woodman turned out to be seriously injured. It was simply an unfortunate situation and despite the reaction it generated from some who believed they were wronged, it was one which was handled well. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms