A brilliant hat-trick from Borja Sainz clinched Norwich’s 3-2 win at Derby but the main talking point of the Pride Park clash was a controversial opening goal for his team.
Norwich took the lead in the third minute of stoppage-time via a brilliant finish from Sainz as he performed an acrobatic mid-air backheel to convert the ball from close range from Josh Sargent’s cross.
Sargent had seen an initial effort blocked and the rebound seemed to have gone well out of play before he crossed for Sainz – a strong suspicion confirmed by television replays.
It appeared that the ball was over the line by a good foot, but Derby’s intense protests made no difference to referee Oliver Langford and his assistant.
There was also controversy over the hat-trick goal which came from a move that started when the ball appeared to have gone out for a Derby corner at the other end, but Jack Stacey cleared upfield.
The reaction of the Pride Park crowd, who jeered the officials off at the interval, was predictable, all the more so as it ended a run of seven and a half games without their team conceding at home in the league – dating back to mid-March and a goal by Reading in League One.
The nature of the goal is also sure to spark more discussions over whether the second tier of the English game should follow the example of the Premier League and adopt the VAR replay system.
At least justice was done, in the eyes of the home side, when Craig Forsyth scored an equaliser on the hour.
A corner from Nathaniel Mendez-Laing was headed back across goal by Curtis Nelson and Forsyth finished well, through a busy penalty area, from eight yards.
But Norwich took just five minutes to regain the lead, with Sainz again punishing the home defence as he received a pass from Kenny McLean and cut between two defenders.
His run created enough space for him to produce a right-footed shot from just inside the area which beat the dive of Jacob Widell Zetterstrom.
And Sainz completed his hat-trick on 87 minutes as Derby piled forward in search of an equaliser and Norwich broke upfield through Sargent.
His cross was met by Sainz on the six-yard line and Widell Zetterstrom failed to stop the shot as it squirmed through his body and over the line.
Derby substitute Corey Blackett-Taylor pulled his team back to within a goal in the first minute of added time when he ran half the length of the field and cut in from the left wing to beat Angus Gunn from eight yards, sparking a furious finale.
Although their opening goal should clearly have been ruled out, it did come at the end of a period of mounting pressure from the visitors, inspired by Sainz.
He sent a shot flying inches wide from the edge of the area, then the Spanish winger almost chipped in an effort which was tipped over by the keeper, before his accurate cross looked like being turned in by Sargent only for Eiran Cashin to make a superb interception.
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