Rio Ferdinand disagrees with VAR explanation after Granit Xhaka goal against Manchester United

Rio Ferdinand disagreed with former referee Peter Walton as he insisted Granit Xhaka’s goal against Manchester United should not have stood.

Xhaka thundered home his strike from distance with 20 minutes to go to sentence United to a second defeat of the week as they lost 3-1 at Arsenal. The result leaves them six points off fourth in the Premier League and all but ends their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League.

Replays of the goal showed David de Gea’s view was impeded by Eddie Nketiah, who was stood in an offside position as Xhaka struck the ball. The United goalkeeper can be seen trying to see past the Arsenal striker before making a desperate attempt to reach Xhaka’s shot.

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Explaining the decision to allow the goal to stand on BT Sport at full-time, former referee Walton insisted the right call had been made by VAR. But Ferdinand was having none of it.

“He (Nketiah) is offside,” Ferdinand said. “It is a great strike, an absolute arrow, but when you look at that shot of De Gea looking around that player, surely he is interfering with play?

“He is standing in an offside position, De Gea has to look around the player and he is absolutely in line with the player. If he is having to lean around a player in an offside position then it should be offside.”

Walton disagreed, saying: “Rio is right in terms of the interference, but the offence is committed if an attacker is right in the sight of the goalkeeper. You can argue that he (De Gea) is looking around him but also (Victor) Lindelof is there too.

“He begins to look past him but as the ball is struck, it is Lindelof who is in front of De Gea. That player is not