'A Laughing Stock' - Premier League Criticised as 'Blatant Handball' During Liverpool vs Bournemouth Game Ignored

The Premier League 2025-26 season opened with a Liverpool vs Bournemouth game that was as entertaining as it was controversial. The Reds won 4-2 in a thrilling back and forth encounter to start their title defence with a victory, but the game was marred by several controversies. 

Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo was subjected to racist abuse from a fan, which led to the game halting for a few minutes as the matter was dealt with and then the match resumed. 

And there was also a controversial handball call that, despite appearing blatant to the naked eye, was not given as a foul against Bournemouth. 

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Controversy Over Marcos Senesi Handball

The incident in question took place in the 14th minute of the game, when defender Marcos Senesi appeared to clearly try and stop the ball running away from him with his hand. 

The intent was clear but he only got fingertips to the ball before it reached Liverpool forward Hugo Ekitike. However, the decision was not given. 

The Premier League Match Centre account on X (formerly Twitter), which gives rulings on VAR and other refereering decisions, tried to explain it away with a lengthy statement. 

However, fans were not buying it - and quickly took to social media to express their angst at what they felt was a very bad call. 

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The incident did not affect the outcome of the game in any way as Liverpool ended up winning it, but it did highlight that consistency on basic decisions remains an issue on the football field.