Sunderland were beaten 3-1 at the London Stadium with a first-half penalty decision key to the outcome

Former Premier League referee and Sky Sports pundit Dermot Gallagher has said that Thomas Bramall made the right decision in awarding a penalty to West Ham United at the London Stadium on Saturday.

Jarrod Bowen doubled the host's advantage in the first half from the penalty spot after Trai Hume was ruled to have tripped West Ham United left back Ollie Scarles. The referee's decision was quickly confirmed by VAR and speaking on Sky Sports show Ref Watch, Gallagher said he felt it was the right decision.

"I think it's a penalty," Gallagher said.

"Hume realises it's a penalty, he tries to pull his leg away, but the damage is already done. He's already there. He catches Scarles knee on knee."

Former Premier League striker Jay Bothroyd agreed, saying that the right decision had been made.

"I know exactly what Scarles is doing there - it's an Iniesta," Bothroyd said.

"You're trying to knock the ball around and then bring it back. As he's taken the ball one way and gone the other way, he's hit his leg and is not able to bring the ball back into his path.

"That's why it's a penalty. There's contact there and it's the right decision."

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Gallagher and Bothroyd deliver verdict on Granit Xhaka incident

The pair also delivered their verdict on the scenes that saw Bramall briefly pause the game before stoppage time. Granit Xhaka was spotted exchanging verbals with West Ham fans just behind the Sunderland dug out, with the game resuming after a short pause. Gallagher said the referee will have paused the game to allow the situation to be dealt with.

"Gather as much information as possible, be guided by the people who matter and relay it to the officials," Gallagher said.

"Let the benches know why he's stopped the game and just try and contain it - get stewards and police there."

Bothroyd said he emphasised with the reaction from the Sunderland bench.

"You try and stay as professional as possible," Bothroyd said.

"You have to handle yourself in a professional manner. But sometimes, people are saying stuff that's so obscene that you can't help but turn around and react.

"When you look there, it wasn't just Xhaka. There were West Ham players reacting as well."

Speaking after the game, Sunderland head coach Régis Le Bris said he wasn't sure of the details and didn't want to deflect from a poor Sunderland performance.

"No, the bench is too far from the sideline," Le Bris said.

"I didn't see what happened and haven't spoken with anyone about it. We don't want to think about the environment, we are thinking about us. The main point at the minute is that we are not at the level that can happen. It's important to analyse and repeat, to learn, to work hard and to prepare for the next game. Nothing else."

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