Why Chelsea weren't awarded penalty against Man City despite Mateo Kovacic's arm being in unnatural position - explained

Erling Haaland and Kovacic were on target as Manchester City began their title defence campaign with a comfortable 2-0 win over Chelsea on Sunday. Kovacic did a mellow celebration after scoring against his former club, however, the Croatian did draw the ire of the Stamford Bridge crowd as they felt the Blues were robbed of a penalty after the ball hit the midfielder's hand during the game.

The incident so happened, Kovacic and Malo Gusto went for a 50-50 challenge inside the City box but the Chelsea defender was first to reach the ball as he attempted to kick. The ball ricocheted up onto Kovacic's arm before going out of play. Referee Anthony Taylor initially called it a corner but later VAR was called on to check the incident. After a thorough check, the VAR officials backed Taylor's decision as Chelsea's corner stood.

Per the new handball law, every touch of a player's arm or hand will not be expected to be an offence. Defenders can also play without holding their arms behind their backs. If a player's arm is in a justifiable position, referees will not give a penalty should the ball hit them via a deflection, if they are falling or are close to the ball.

The new law came into practice after several Premier League clubs raised the issue of too many handballs being given by officials in matches and that the existing law was too harsh last season.

The Enzo Maresca era got off to a disappointing start, however, the Blues will now aim to get back to winning ways on Thursday as they take on Servette in a Europa Conference League play-offs first leg clash.