'This has got to be outlawed' - Keith Hackett furious after Soucek incident in West Ham loss vs Brentford

PGMOL have been urged to review the holding offence rule after Tomas Soucek was denied a penalty in West Ham United‘s 3-0 loss at Brentford.

Former refereeing chief Keith Hackett has insisted that the Hammers should have been awarded a spot kick against the Bees after Keane Lewis-Potter’s challenge on Soucek.

The Brentford full-back grappled his opponent to the floor in the 58th minute of the clash as Jarrod Bowen delivered a corner.

Referee Craig Pawson waved away Soucek’s claims for a penalty, as Keith Andrews’ side quickly counter-attacked and nearly scored a third goal.

West Ham’s next match comes against league leaders Arsenal, and they will need much better luck to get anything from the clash as they battle relegation.

PGMOL told to spend summer sorting out holding issue

PGMOL chief Howard Webb insisted last summer that Premier League referees would award more penalties for holding in the 2025-26 season, but the Hammers were denied a spot kick for what looked to be a clear offence on Saturday.

Former boss Hackett has now said that Soucek should have won a penalty, and the PGMOL must use controversies like this one to conduct a full review into holding offences in the summer so that all parties are on the same page by the time next season starts.

Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, he said: “The PGMOL have got to spend the summer sorting this mess out. You cannot hold your opponent. It’s rugby-style.

“That’s a penalty. If referees are going to ignore it and not award a penalty kick, it will continue.

“The only way they’re going to resolve this, (as) we’re coming to the end of the season (and) they’ve allowed it all season, (is that) they really need to now draw a line in the sand and start to go back to basics.

“(The PGMOL must) say very clearly that holding offences of this type, which are easy to detect, must be penalised. They can tell the clubs in pre-season. They can go to clubs and tell the players.

“For me, this has got to be outlawed. It cannot be acceptable in the game of football. That’s for rugby, not for football.”

Soucek could be coming to the end of his time at West Ham

Soucek may be running out of time to make a positive impact at the London Stadium as relegation to the Championship looms large.

The Czech midfielder scored his 44th goal for the club last week in their 2-1 win over Everton, but was unable to stop them dropping into the bottom three over the weekend after Spurs beat Aston Villa.

Sources have revealed to Football Insider that West Ham are open to selling Soucek this summer as he nears the final year of his current contract.

Former boss David Moyes is believed to want him at Everton for next season, and a departure seems inevitable if West Ham are relegated from the top flight.

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