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In the UEFA Champions League semi-final, Bayern Munich drew 1-1 with Paris Saint-Germain at home. Paris eliminated Bayern with an aggregate score of 6-5 to advance to this season's Champions League final. However, multiple decisions by the referee during the match caused dissatisfaction among Bayern's players and coach, while also sparking questions from fans outside the stadium about the officiating.
Was Harry Kane Offside in the 23rd Minute?
The incident occurred in the 23rd minute when Harry Kane made a forward run towards Paris' goal and found himself one-on-one with the goalkeeper. But the referee quickly blew his whistle for offside, prematurely halting the attack. However, slow-motion replays showed that Paris defender Nuno Mendes was in a position closer to his own goal at that moment.
Michael Ballack, working as a guest commentator, stated: "The referee blew his whistle before the linesman raised his flag. Maybe they had communication, but he can't stop this play! This is another major mistake!" Ballack continued: "Because we have a rule that referees should let the game continue. So why did he stop this play now?" Ballack then emphasized again: "It was very close. He was running towards the goal alone! What would have happened next is another matter, but the referee can't just stop the game by himself! This is a major error by the referee!" For Bayern, this decision also brought an early end to Harry Kane's excellent scoring opportunity.
Nuno Mendes' Deliberate Handball Not Punished with a Second Yellow Card
In the 29th minute of Bayern vs Paris, Nuno Mendes was suspected of handball. Bayern's players and head coach protested strongly, but the referee did not show a card! Mendes already had one yellow card! However, subsequent possession went to Paris, and the official website showed that Konrad Laimer had committed a foul first.
During the match, Iñaki Iturralde González, referee analyst for AS newspaper and SER radio and former La Liga referee, explained: “Yes, he did blow for the previous foul. And there is doubt whether a second yellow card should be shown, because a yellow card is only issued if there is a clear goal-scoring opportunity. And at that time, the ball was going towards the sideline.”
But post-match replays from the front-view feed of the match showed that Laimer's first touch to control the ball was with his lower chest/upper abdomen area rather than his arm, and the ball's trajectory did not change.
Konrad Laimer complained in a post-match interview: "Of course, it's not easy to see the details immediately during the game. I felt like I stopped the ball with my chest first, and then the ball hit Mendes' arm. However, the referee blew the whistle for my handball foul five seconds later, which I found absolutely absurd." There were claims that the fourth official had allegedly reminded the referee that a Bayern player had committed a handball first. Laimer was quite surprised and confused by this, questioning: “Since when can the fourth official intervene in such decisions? I have never encountered this situation before. But in any case, there is not much point in dwelling on these things now, and trying to change the result at this point is futile.”
João Neves' Obvious Handball Inside the Penalty Area
In the 31st minute of the match, as Bayern looked for a counterattack opportunity, another chaotic scene unfolded inside Paris' penalty area. When Vitinha attempted to clear the ball, he kicked it directly onto João Neves' arm, and Neves' arm was clearly away from his body at that time. The home team's players immediately surrounded referee João Pedro Silva Pinheiro. But Pinheiro rejected Bayern's protests, and the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) did not intervene, leading fans on social media to question why a penalty was not awarded.
According to Dale Johnson, football rules journalist for BBC Sport, this was because there is a little-known exemption clause in the handball rules. According to the match regulations, the following situation does not constitute a handball: "The ball is kicked or touched by a teammate and then hits the player's own hand or arm (unless the ball goes directly into the opponent's goal, or the player scores immediately afterwards, in which case a direct free kick should be awarded to the opponent)." Johnson said: "This clause applies when the ball is accidentally kicked towards you by a teammate. Even if your arm is away from your body, the rules state that a penalty should not be awarded in this situation." "When Vitinha made a clearance, could João Neves have expected the ball to hit him directly?" “Of course, this exemption can be overridden by a deliberate handball. But in the specific context at that time, this action should not have been penalized with a penalty.”
Regarding this penalty controversy, Antonio Mateu Lahoz stated on Movistar+ program: "From the nature of football itself, this clearly hasn't changed. João Neves couldn't have been trying to make his body bigger to block his teammate's clearance, so this was a natural and accidental movement." Lahoz further said: “The problem is that we have given too many handball decisions that shouldn't have been given in the past, so now penalties may be demanded in any situation. Even though Bayern wanted this penalty very much, they themselves know deep down that it couldn't have been given.”
What Does Manager Vincent Kompany Think About These Two Decisions?
“We have to look back at some of the referee's decisions in the two-legged tie. Of course, this cannot be an excuse for all the defeats, but it is indeed important. If we look back at both matches, we may find that there were too many factors working against us. The players gave their all, and against a strong Paris Saint-Germain side, we did our best.”
“Regarding the handball situations, I understand the rules. The first handball hit his body first, then his hand. The angle was very close, the ball hit his body first, then his hand. The referee said it was because of the trajectory of the cross, so it wasn't a penalty.”
“The second one, João Neves' hand was in the air and touched the ball. Because it was hit by a teammate's clearance, it wasn't a penalty. But if you look closely at both phases, anyone with a little common sense would find this absurd. Anyway, the decision was really ridiculous. This doesn't define the whole match, but the final score was only one goal apart.”
“As for Nuno Mendes' second yellow card, I think he initially wanted to show it, but then retracted the decision because he realized he had already given Nuno one yellow and didn't want to send him off.”
“He changed the direction of the decision to the other side. I watched replays from several angles, and I didn't see Konrad Laimer touch the ball with his hand. They said he did, so I'm not sure.”
