Jhon Duran was the subject of controversy after Aston Villa secured a narrow 2-1 victory against Wycombe to advance into the fourth round of the Carabao Cup.
Jhon Duran has made a magnificent start to the season, scoring four times from the bench in wins over West Ham, Leicester City, Everton and Wolves.
Unai Emery recently said that Duran was close to starting a game for Aston Villa and that wish became a reality on Tuesday night as the 20-year-old lined up against Wycombe Wanderers.
Emery made 10 changes to the side that beat Wolves 3-1 on Saturday and the Villa striker was out to make a positive impression as he battles with Ollie Watkins for a place in the starting XI.
Duran won and scored a penalty to help Villa secure a narrow 2-1 win over Wycombe however, there was controversy surrounding the decision to award a spot kick.
- READ MORE: Aston Villa player ratings vs Wycombe Wanderers, Kadan Young shines as two players get 5/10
Jhon Duran’s penalty should have been overturned vs Wycombe
Duran latched onto Ross Barkley’s through ball and as he rounded the goalkeeper, referee John Busby felt there was contact that brought him down in the box.
There wasn’t the luxury of VAR at Adams Park, so Busby could only go off what he first saw and unfortunately, he made the wrong decision.
Replays later showed that the Colombian dived in the box, with Alan Brazil and Dean Saunders slamming Duran for fooling the referee.
At this point in the game, Wycombe were still in the tie but this decision ultimately ended their chances of grabbing an equaliser, despite scoring a last-minute consolation.
Wycombe manager Matt Bloomfield was unsurprisingly left aggrieved by the error but did sympathise with the referee.
“It’s just frustrating as we had lots of good moments, a lot of good opportunities, yet ultimately, the goal that decided the game is disappointing,” Bloomfield said as per Bucks Free Press.
“I’ve watched it back and I think social media is full of everyone’s opinions so I won’t go too deep into it.
“Overall, it is tough for the referees to make these decisions but we feel slightly aggrieved.
“I don’t think it’s right how managers speak about referees at times – I’ll give my opinion and I’ll speak to John [Busby, the referee] in the correct manner, but I feel any manager would feel aggrieved.
“If you look at it the other way, he’s been given a decision to make in that moment.”
- READ MORE: Emi Martinez and James Maddison love what £33m Aston Villa star did against Wycombe Wanderers
Jhon Duran is lucky VAR wasn’t at Adams Park
Duran was eager to make an impression at Adams Park and after squandering a few decent opportunities, he decided to dive in the box and win a penalty.
The 20-year-old took a chance on getting away with it as there was no VAR present at the stadium and luckily for him, he did.
However, if he attempted to pull the same antics in the Premier League, a penalty would have been waved away and the referee would have taken his name in the book.
Duran is still unfortunately second in the pecking order to Watkins at Villa and antics like this wouldn’t have helped his cause, although he has now scored five goals in in just 251 minutes of action this season.
