The art of buying a penalty: Our experts reveal how Harry Kane and Anthony Gordon do it - and whether Bukayo Saka was robbed

It's the new diving. Throw out a leg as the defender moves in for the ball, make first contact and then find yourself in a heap. To the naked eye, it is a penalty. Cast iron.

When Bukayo Saka raced toward goal with a chance to make it 3-2 against Bayern Munich in a Champions League quarter-final, it seemed that nothing could stop him.

Out came Manuel Neuer, the veteran German of some repute. On first look, as Saka was sent sprawling, it was no debate. Penalty kick, the German took his leg away.

But wait. As the 60,000 Emirates crowd were baying for the referee's whistle, Sweden's Glenn Nyberg blew for full-time! A case of officials getting wise, or - according to Arsenal supporters - a case of the referee getting it wrong?

Unlike when two decisions favoured Newcastle's Anthony Gordon recently against West Ham (one was much to the misfortune of the luckless Kalvin Phillips) or when masters of the mischief, Wilf Zaha, Jamie Vardy or Harry Kane, regularly tried it on in the Premier League, this time the referee was not falling for the fall.

There is little evidence of Saka, a budding Premier League superstar and a popular England player too, diving - especially with such a clear goalscoring opportunity.

But since VAR, player realise that diving alone will not get them a penalty so the trailing leg is on the rise and defenders need to beware. It will be coming to a penalty box near you soon.

Rarely an episode of Match of the Day passes without this new phenomenon, so what do our experts think about it? And how would you feel if Saka, Gordon or Kane do exactly the same thing at the Euros? After all, nobody seemed to complain when Michael Owen went a full Tom Daly in the box.

CHRIS SUTTON - STRIKER VERDICT

The old trailing leg routine is a classic tactic for certain strikers, though not one that I was ever inclined to try. I'd much rather score myself than try to con the referee, or 'do a Harry Kane' as we might be tempted to call it!

Jamie Vardy made a career out of turning 50-50s into 70-30s in his favour, using his speed to fool us into thinking he was clipped.

He won a penalty at the Emirates Stadium in February 2016 when he skipped by Nacho Monreal and left out a dangling leg to create the contact. But just because Vardy got away with it back then does not mean Bukayo Saka should have been awarded a penalty against Bayern Munich.

Saka threw himself into Manuel Neuer. He avoids the challenges of Premier League defenders on a weekly basis and I don't think of him as a dropper-downer because he usually manoeuvres around them so masterfully.

But for whatever reason, he chose to crash into Neuer on this occasion. This was a classic case of a player looking to win a penalty.

What made it even more baffling was how Saka could have scored if he stayed on his feet, and I cannot help wonder if this could prove costly for Arsenal in the Champions League. Those same supporters screaming for a foul on Saka would have been livid if this was Kane trying to dupe David Raya, especially given his reputation for going to ground.

I was asked on Wednesday whether strikers practise winning penalties in training. That would be pretty pathetic if so, but then I can't speak for Jose Mourinho's Porto team in the 2003 UEFA Cup final! They threw themselves to the deck whenever possible against my Celtic side!

Paolo Ferreira admitted as much a few years later. I host the Simulation Game on BBC Radio 5Live where I look at the weekend's worst dives and name and shame the winner. At first, I thought we wouldn't have enough incidents to analyse weekly. It turns out we have too many to choose from! That's how rife it is in the Premier League and I still think there needs to be a hard-line approach to stopping divers by issuing them with a three-game ban. That would soon stop those who like to trail a leg in pursuit of a penalty.

SHOULD ARSENAL HAVE WON A PENALTY?

No – Saka tried to con us all.

MARTIN KEOWN – DEFENDER VERDICT

We have seen in the Premier League how players can put themselves in the path of the tackle to win a penalty. Sometimes by leaving a trailing leg as they fly by.

Other times by sticking their foot between their opponent and the ball.

Anthony Gordon won two debatable spot-kicks for Newcastle against West Ham less than two weeks ago by doing precisely that. Firstly by drawing a foul out of Vladimir Coufal as he tried to win the ball in the box. 

Then by doing the same to Kalvin Phillips as he looked to clear his lines. Gordon is a highly-gifted footballer who can use his extreme pace to lull the opposition into committing to the challenge, and it is down to the referees to determine who is honestly going for the ball and who is simply trying to get the foul.

In my day, I was well aware of the strikers who had a reputation for going to ground too easily. Defenders today have to vigilant and beware such situations, knowing that there are still attackers who are clever and cunning enough to exploit any rash movements you make.

But this was not the case with Bukayo Saka. He was wiped out by Manuel Neuer, utterly and unfairly, and I could not believe the refereeing team did not see it that way. It is important that you watch the replays at full speed and not in super slow-mo to truly appreciate how it happened. 

Bayern Munich's goalkeeper came rushing towards Saka after he broke behind. In doing so, it was Neuer who created the contact in getting so close, not Saka, who was forced into falling over that outstretched leg.

As a former defender, it is hard to describe how cheated you feel when you are penalised for something you did not do, including when your opponent is the one who created the contract. 

But Neuer will realise he got away with one here. Whether the referee was consciously or subconsciously levelling up the game, given the penalty that Bayern weren't awarded after it was claimed Gabriel Magalhaes handled the ball after a goal-kick, only he will know. What I know is Saka should have been awarded that stoppage-time penalty.

SHOULD ARSENAL HAVE WON A PENALTY?

Yes - Saka could not avoid Neuer.

MARK CLATTENBURG - REFEREE VERDICT

When I was refereeing in the Premier League without VAR, attackers could win penalties without having to create any contact. The most memorable time that I was conned in my career was in February 2007 at White Hart Lane. It was 0-0 when Cristiano Ronaldo raced into the box.

To me, it looked like Steed Malbranque had tripped him.

But Ronaldo was such a master of disguise that I'd been duped.

Manchester United scored and went on to win 4-0. I knew that I'd made a mistake when I walked out for the second half because of the dog's abuse I received from all of Tottenham.

They'd had the chance to review the incident at half-time. Now, we have VAR for that in real time, so attackers know they need to create contact if they're to stand a chance of a penalty being upheld.

Referees have a split-second to decide whether what happens is natural and in Bukayo Saka's case, it wasn't. Manuel Neuer stood his ground as Saka kicked his planted leg.

This wasn't a case of the Bayern Munich goalkeeper taking the massive risk of diving in like Aaron Wan-Bissaka for Manchester United against Harvey Elliott of Liverpool.

There was no second movement from Neuer that suggested he had tried and failed to win the ball and for that reason, the referee Glenn Nyberg was bang on in his judgement.

I do think if the penalty had been awarded to Arsenal in real time, VAR Pol van Boekel would not have overturned the decision for clear and obvious reasons. But Nyberg understood what had happened, the way Saka had used his left leg to divert the ball away from Neuer before using his right to create contact.

Saka shouldn't worry about him developing a reputation among referees. As furious as I was with Ronaldo at the time, I did not carry that into other matches because there is every chance it will be a legitimate foul next time.

As for the Bayern penalty appeal, for a handball by Gabriel Magalhaes, I sympathise with Nyberg. He tried to use common sense in allowing the game to continue but unfortunately, the laws of the game are clear. He had blown the whistle for the goal-kick to be taken and Raya technically took it, so this was a handling offence and Bayern are right to say they should have been awarded a penalty.

SHOULD ARSENAL HAVE WON A PENALTY?

No - Saka created the contact.