Burnley furious after VAR disallows goal in chaotic Brentford clash as decision explained

Ashley Barnes saw an equaliser for Burnley vs Brentford ruled out for handball deep into added time during a chaotic defeat for his side at Turf Moor. At 4-3 down, it was a case of last chance saloon for Scott Parker's Clarets, as Maxime Esteve launched the ball into the Brentford box from his own half eight minutes into additional time.

Joe Worrall then connected to put the ball on a plate for Barnes , with the late super sub firing home from close range to level matters as the home crowd erupted in jubilation. However, celebrations were short-lived as VAR swiftly stepped in to scrutinise the build-up, identifying that Barnes had handled the ball before his strike.

In heart-breaking fashion, referee Sam Barrott then announced his decision to rule to goal out, shortly before the full-time whistle sounded and Burnley left the encounter empty-handed despite their best efforts. Explaining his decision, Barrott was head saying on the field: "After review - 35 [Ashley Barnes], accidentally handles the ball. That leads to a direct goal. My final decision will be defensive free-kick to Brentford."

It's a decision that Burnley co-owner JJ Watt rued, given the former NFL star was in the stands at Turf Moor to cheer on the Clarets. Taking to X in the aftermath of Barrott's announcement, he wrote: "If it takes 10 minutes, it’s not clear and obvious..." in a huge dig toward VAR.

It will come as a bitter pill to swallow for Burnley fans, considering Parker almost engineered the comeback of the season for his side. Mikkel Damsgaard opened the scoring for the Bees just nine minutes into the match, before Igor Thiago and Kevin Schade incited fears that it may be another stuffing on Burnley's part with further goals ahead of the break.

Michael Kayode gave Burnley fans a slight glimmer of hope with an own goal three minutes into stoppage time, before Parker and his side returned to their dressing room with a mountain to climb if they harboured any hopes of taking anything from the game.

Jaidon Anthony reduced the deficit to just one just two minutes into the second-half, as Burnley emerged from the tunnel seemingly invigorated from Parker's pep talk. And Turf Moor erupted when Zian Flemming levelled matters 60 minutes into the encounter, before Burnley pressed on for a much-needed winner.

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It was Damsgaard who ultimately sealed the deal for Brentford on the afternoon, however, putting the game to bed three minutes into additional time to secure all three points. The result means that remain 19th in the Premier League standings, staring down the barrel of imminent relegation to the Championship.

With just 10 games remaining of 2025/26, the Clarets are eight points from Safety, with 17th-place Nottingham Forest holding a game in hand. The Tricky Trees return to league action on Sunday afternoon, when they play Brighton at the AMEX Stadium.

Up next for Burnley is a trip to Hill Dickinson Stadium against a high-flying Everton on Tuesday, March 3 at 7.30pm.

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