The Premier League released a statement for a contentious refereeing incident during Wolves’ 2-1 loss away at Liverpool.

Vitor Pereira’s side responded well to a two-goal deficit but were beaten 2-1 at Anfield on Sunday afternoon.

It was a proper Jekyll and Hyde performance from Wolves as they lacked structure and authority in the first half but were arguably the better team in the second period. Mistakes crept in for both goals conceded as Toti Gomes’ scuffed clearance allowed Luis Diaz to tap in for opener and Emmanuel Agbadou’s miskick let Diaz through to win the penalty Mohamed Salah converted.

Matheus Cunha scored a stunning curled long-ranger to breathe life back into Wolves for the final half an hour and Liverpool were hanging on by a thread come stoppage time. The Old Gold proved they could go toe-to-toe with the Premier League title favourites near the end and Pereira’s men can be proud of their second half efforts.

Plenty of the post-match attention won’t be on Wolves’ response, however, as there was a controversial refereeing incident before the hour mark. Referee Simon Hooper was involved in several contentious moments throughout the match as he failed to hand out a second yellow card to Liverpool’s Ibrahima Konate and perhaps unfairly booked Emmanuel Agbadou unfairly – but an overturned penalty in the second period took the biscuit.

Wolves defender Emmanuel Agbadou mistimed his challenge but didn't make sufficient contact with Diogo Jota, so referee Simon Hooper overturned Liverpool's penalty. | AFP via Getty Images

placeholder image — Wolves defender Emmanuel Agbadou mistimed his challenge but didn't make sufficient contact with Diogo Jota, so referee Simon Hooper overturned Liverpool's penalty. | AFP via Getty Images

Hooper originally pointed to the spot following what he judged to be a reckless sliding challenge from Agbadou on Diogo Jota but the referee was asked to take a look at the pitchside monitor to reconsider his decision. After watching a few replays, Hooper decided to overturn the penalty, instead prompting a drop ball for a Jota dive.

In real time, it looked like a stonewall penalty as Agbadou’s lunge was mistimed and out of control. But then, after the replays showed, it became apparent that Jota had indeed dived. It wasn’t just a regular dive, either, with Jota blatantly leaping over Agbadou’s leg and somehow escaping a booking.

The Premier League responded to the incident a few minutes afterward, posting to their official ‘Match Centre’ account on X (formerly Twitter). The statement read: “VAR checked the referee’s call of penalty to Liverpool for a challenge by Agbadou on Jota and deemed any contact was not initiated by Agbadou, therefore recommended an on-field review. The referee overturned the original decision and play restarted with a drop ball.”

Wolves have seen contentious refereeing calls go against them consistently over recent seasons, so all in Old Gold will be relieved they weren’t cost by another at Anfield.