The unpunished John McGinn incident that's caused amazement - 'It's an obvious error'

John McGinn was fortunate to avoid any punishment for his actions in Aston Villa's heavy loss to Brighton.

That is according to former FIFA official Keith Hackett, who was sharing his views exclusively to Villa News.

The Villans were thrashed 4-0 on the South Coast in their first match of the 2026-27 Premier League campaign.

Joao Gomes' sending off just before half-time compounded Villa's misery at the Amex Stadium.

Victor Lindelof's own goal was added to by Maxim de Cuyper and Jack Hinshelwood's double.

It could have been even worse for Unai Emery's men in the end.

What did John McGinn get away with vs Brighton?

Skipper McGinn apologised to Villa fans for the display against Brighton.

The only way the Villa players can prove they are sorry is by showing it on the field - starting against Arsenal next Monday.

McGinn had a poor game and could easily have given away a penalty late on for his barge on Ibrahim Osman.

It would have presented Brighton with a chance to score a fifth goal and seriously embarrass the Europa League holders.

Sharing his views on the incident, Hackett insisted VAR should have helped out referee Peter Bankes.

"This is a nailed-on penalty kick," Hackett said. "The referee in not awarding the penalty has made a clear and obvious error. VAR should have intervened."

You have to wonder if Bankes simply decided against pointing to the spot in the knowledge the game was already done.

Villa match unwanted Premier League record in Brighton loss

This really was a day to forget for Villa.

They became only the second team in Premier League history to concede four goals and have a player sent off in the first half of a match.

The other team to do so was Southampton against Manchester United in February 2021.

It is now a case of the players getting seriously down to work on the training ground in the hope of putting things right.

After all, as we saw last season, a slow start to the campaign does not necessarily mean things can't be turned around.