Fulham Savagely Trolls Chelsea After VAR Drama Sparks Goal Controversy

Fulham have selected Josh King's strike against Chelsea as their Goal of the Month for August, even though the young player's effort was eventually disallowed.

The 18-year-old midfielder believed he had scored his first goal for the team as he turned away from Chelsea's defenders and shot past Robert Sánchez, but the Blues were angered to see Trevoh Chalobah lying on the pitch following a clash with Rodrigo Muniz during the build-up play.

VAR requested a review of the situation and match referee Rob Jones finally determined that Muniz had illegally made contact with Chalobah's foot, disallowing the goal. Professional Game Match Officials Limited head Howard Webb later called the disputed ruling a "misjudgement" by the match officials.

Chelsea eventually secured a 2–0 victory but Fulham have honored King's goal by ranking it above their two official strikes in August's Goal of the Month voting.

"While it was harshly denied to the 18-year-old, there is no questioning the quality of the attempt, as he boldly advanced onto Sander Berge's defense-splitting delivery and moved inside past Tosin, before leaving the former Fulham player seated as he struck a shot between his legs and into the near corner," a club statement explained.

"That he received 83.1% of the votes shows how remarkable a moment that was, or could have been."

The Key Match Incidents panel, which examines the major officiating decisions each week, confirmed both the VAR intervention and the referee's final decision were wrong and felt the goal should have stood.

"The panel unanimously backed the initial on-field decision to let play proceed and award the goal," the group stated.