West Ham and QPR draw as Bowen’s penalty is saved

West Ham and QPR played out a 1-1 draw in the Sky Bet Championship. Jarrod Bowen’s penalty was saved in the 91st minute, leaving West Ham to miss the chance to move to the top of the league.

QPR had taken the lead through Nicolas Madsen, who converted a penalty. Until the 70th minute, his goal was the only thing separating the sides. West Ham then raised the tempo. After his first effort was blocked, Bowen scored his seventh goal of the season to level the match. Charles later denied him with a sharp save.

In the 90th minute, Amadou Mbengue tugged Pablo’s shirt in the penalty area. Bowen stepped up with the opportunity to win the match for West Ham, but his attempt was kept out.

The decision to award QPR’s penalty drew criticism. “That’s definitely not a penalty. No way on Earth. This is an absolute howler,” said Lee Hendrie on co-commentary. At half-time, Rob Green also questioned the decision: “The referee didn’t let the situation breathe. He didn’t give himself a moment to think: ‘hold on a minute, what’s actually happened here?’” Another comment summed up the criticism: “He just saw the ball move, the player move, the player fall over and gave the penalty.”