Richard Keys thinks Sheffield United were on the end of a bad decision in the Championship playoff final and but for it would have beaten Sunderland at Wembley.
Sunderland won the Wembley Cup 2-1, with Tommy Watson delivering a spectacular shot deep into injury time to secure promotion to the Premier League.
He took advantage of Kieffer Moore’s error, which was heavily lambasted by former striker Darren Bent.
There was considerable controversy though when Sheffield United had a goal ruled off following a VAR assessment.
Sheffield United were winning 1-0 at the time, as Harrison Burrows hit to apparently make it 2-0, before the goal was called out owing to offside.
VAR said that the Sunderland goalkeeper’s view of the ball was obscured by Vinicius Souza, who was in an offside position.
Keys believes Sheffield United should not have had the goal ruled out, and at 2-0, he expects the Blades to win the playoff final.
He emphasized that the Sunderland goalie could plainly see the ball and there was ‘no way’ Souza altered it.
| Team | Promotion method |
|---|---|
| Burnley | Automatic |
| Leeds United | Automatic |
| Sunderland | Playoff winners |
Keys wrote on X: “Congrats to Sunderland but I feel for the Blades. There’s nothing wrong with the 2nd goal.
“Clearly the keeper can see the ball because he tries to save it.
“There’s no way he’s impacted and 2-0 wins it.”
Sheffield United will now have to prepare for another season in the Championship after failing to advance through the playoffs.
The Blades appeared to be a decent bet for automatic promotion until a late-season slump saw them drop out of the top two.
Sunderland, however, had been written off for the playoffs due to their dismal form, with one former EFL star proclaiming them ‘gone’.
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