Keith Hackett baffled by Adam Wharton incident in Crystal Palace win at Fulham
03/29/2025 11:59 AM
Adam Wharton was very fortunate referee Darren England decided to take a “lenient” approach during Crystal Palace’s FA Cup win over Fulham, says Keith Hackett.
The former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA official exclusively told Football Insider the Eagles could have “easily been down to ten men” after a rash challenge from the England midfielder.
Having spent most of the first-half penned back by a lively Fulham side, Eberechi Eze took matters into his own hands in the 34th minute, scoring a stunning opener for the away side.
Just four minutes later, the winger was once again causing trouble for the Whites, this time assisting for his teammate Ismaila Sarr to score a lovely glancing header.
Fulham floundered for much of the second half, seemingly struggling to understand how the game had slipped from their grasp, before former Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah delivered the death blow in the 75th minute, making it 3-0.
However, whilst Palace were joyous at full-time, they can perhaps count themselves lucky after a moment in the first half caught they eye.
Adam Wharton makes questionable foul on Rodrigo Muniz
With the scores tied at 0-0 in the 21st minute, Man City transfer target Wharton played a pass back to his defence, before Rodrigo Muniz clumsily bumped into the Palace midfielder.
As the Brazilian turned to continue pressing the Eagles’ backline, the 21-year-old midfielder kicked out at the striker, sending him tumbling to ground.
There was little behind the foul, but it was a puzzling decision, given Wharton had received a booking only minutes earlier.
Given the incident happened off the ball, there was no doubting the malice behind it, which is why Fulham‘s players were left in shock when England chose not to show the central-midfielder a second yellow card.
Keith Hackett gives verdict on Darren England decision
When asked for his opinion on the foul, ex-PGMOL chief, Hackett, told Football Insider exclusively he couldn’t understand why Wharton chose to make the foul, whilst also believing that his actions “warranted” a yellow card, saying:
“In law the players actions warranted a yellow card and referee Darren England decided to take a lenient approach with regard to the incident.
| Match stats | Fulham | Crystal Palace |
| Possession | 71% | 29% |
| Shots (on target) | 16 (3) | 8 (6) |
| Expected goals | 1.24 | 1.46 |
| Big chances (missed) | 2 (2) | 3 (1) |
| Corners | 12 | 2 |
“I cannot understand players who are on a yellow card do not take care with their actions.
“His team could easily have been down to ten men.”
Fulham will look to bounce back from the result when they take on Arsenal at the Emirates on Tuesday (1 April).
Palace meanwhile, will face relegation-bound Southampton on Wednesday (2 April) in their next fixture.
The post Keith Hackett baffled by Adam Wharton incident in Crystal Palace win at Fulham appeared first on Football Insider.
