Real Madrid
fromESPN.com
1 day agoAtletico Madrid rue VAR 'mistake' to overturn Barcelona red card
Diego Simeone criticized the VAR decision to overturn Gerard Martín's red card during Atlético Madrid's loss to Barcelona.
The ongoing discussions regarding future structural changes to the game, such as the introduction of new tournaments (eg. Fifa Club World Cup), further intensify this challenge. These changes have the potential to significantly reduce the downtime available to elite players, affecting their recovery and overall well-being.
"It's obvious that diving there with a yellow card was crazy. Then I arrived at the dressing room and it was clear to me that something was happening to me, that I had to ask for help."
I know we won too much and the people don't want us to win but the referee has to be neutral and for me honestly, it's not fair. At the end, when everything is finished, we are frustrated because it's so clear the foul. He kicked the leg and of course with the push of the action on the ball, the ball goes in.
The highest reported number of players sent off in a single football match is 36 in the Argentine Primera D game between Club Atletico Claypole and Victoriano Arenas refereed by Damian Rubino (Argentina) at the Estadio Rodolfo Capocasa, Claypole, Argentina, on 27 February 2011. All 18 players on each side (11 on-field players and seven substitutes) were sent off following what the referee described in his post-match report as a 'Generalised Brawl'.
One poor decision is forgivable, two is careless, but there were a hat-trick of howlers, with Tammy Abraham clearly offside for Aston Villa's opener. Lucas Digne needed his own dedicated review booth, escaping with a yellow card for an agricultural tackle on Jacob Murphy and avoiding a penalty for handball. Officials ruled that Digne handled the ball outside the penalty area, an impressive feat given that he both took off and landed inside the box as he jumped to block a cross.
At the centre of the storm was referee Jesus Gil Manzano, whose handling of the match visibly frustrated the Barcelona players. Throughout the contest, the referee's decisions appeared to go against Flick's side at key moments, gradually increasing tension on the pitch. A lot of talking points Marginal offside calls, several fouls that went unpunished, and a heavy challenge by Carlos Soler on Pedri all contributed to a sense of injustice from the visiting side.
Image source, Getty Images Football's lawmakers will consider widening the remit for red cards when a goalscoring opportunity is denied at a meeting on Tuesday. However, Arsene Wenger's "daylight" offside proposal is set to be kicked into touch in favour of a different idea which is fairer for defences. Goalkeeper tactical timeouts, time-wasting and video assistant referee (VAR) tweaks are among other items on the agenda.
Serie A's referee designator Gianluca Rocchi said match official Federico La Penna was clearly wrong in showing Juventus defender Pierre Kalulu a second yellow card during Saturday's loss at Inter, and apologised over the incident. Kalulu was sent off after Inter's Alessandro Bastoni tumbled to the ground and immediately gestured towards the referee demanding a card, indicating that Kalulu had grabbed his shirt to bring him down. Television footage suggested there was no contact between the players.