Explaining De Ligt’s controversial goal in the Real Madrid-Bayern Munich match ends with “betrayal”

Once again, the Champions League did not disappoint, as Real Madrid and Bayern Munich played out an exciting semi-final over two legs.

But the end of the 180-minute match was highly controversial, with Bayern potentially denying what would have been a late equalizer at the Bernabeu to send the second leg into extra time.

Bayern defender Matthijs de Ligt thought he had scored the decisive goal, but he discovered that referee Simon Marciniak had blown his whistle after his assistant Tomasz Listkiewicz ruled the goal offside. At that point – in the 13th minute of extra time – Real Madrid were 2-1 up on the night and leading 4-3 on aggregate after last week’s 2-2 draw in Munich.

De Ligt and Bayern coach Thomas Tuchel said in separate interviews after the match that Listkevich apologized for the incident. Tuchel said the decision was “disastrous” and “seems like a betrayal.”

here, The athlete Breaks down the controversial ending to the match.

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What happened?

The ball was played towards Bayern duo Nouaceur Mazraoui and De Ligt as the German side looked for a late equalizer in the 13th minute of extra time.

Listkiewicz then flags offside as Mazraoui and De Ligt challenge for the ball against Real Madrid’s Ferland Mendy.

Replays show the decision was very close.

After Marciniak blew the final whistle, Thomas Müller grabbed the loose ball and directed it towards De Ligt, who turned it over and slotted it into the net.

It seemed that Real Madrid’s players had stopped playing after hearing the referee’s whistle, but Bayern’s players and technical staff were angry and blamed the officials before play resumed.

Bayern took the lead in the 68th minute of the match after Alphonso Davies – who came on in the first half in place of the injured Serge Gnabry – received a long ball from Harry Kane, cut inside and fired a shot with his weaker right foot past Andre. Two colors.

It was another substitute that made the difference for Real Madrid, as Joselu equalized in the 88th minute and then scored the winner in the 91st minute.

Why was play stopped?

The simple answer is that assistant referee Listkiewicz thought there was offside.

However, since the introduction of Video Assistant Referee (VAR) in 2016, offsides have been routinely checked after the fact.

It has become common for linesmen to refrain from signaling offside, even if it appears obvious in real time, if the play is likely to result in a goal. If a goal is then scored or the game is over, the linesman will often raise his flag to indicate offside.

The VAR then checks for offside and confirms or invalidates the assistant’s decision. The VAR system also checks for offside after each goal, so if the linesman misses an offside goal, the goal can still be disallowed after the fact.

The Champions League also uses semi-automated stealth technology, which uses video cameras to monitor around 30 joints on each player’s body.

But as the referee’s whistle had already been blown, the match was over before De Ligt could ‘score’, and the VAR was unable to review the decision.

UEFA has not responded The athleteRequested comment on the incident.

What was the reaction?

Bayern’s players and staff were angry after the decision was made. Tuchel was seen arguing with Listkiewicz while Mueller exchanged heated words with Marciniak.

“We’re almost there,” Tuchel told TNT Sports after the match. “An unusual mistake by the best player (Manuel Neuer) to equalize. Then we conceded a goal with a very narrow decision in stoppage time.

“Then we scored a goal. A disastrous decision by the linesman and the referee. It feels like a betrayal in the end because of this decision. It was a huge battle, we left everything on the pitch and we were almost there. Now we have to congratulate Real Madrid.

“The linesman said: ‘Sorry’ but that doesn’t help. At this level, to raise the flag so close like this at the last minute. And the referee also shouldn’t blow the whistle. He sees we have the second ball, he sees we are hitting the ball wide.”

“Blowing the whistle is a very bad decision. It’s against the system. It’s a bad decision by both of them and it’s a disaster. It’s hard to swallow but it’s there.”

Speaking to beIN Sports, De Ligt added: “The assistant referee told me: ‘I’m sorry, I made a mistake.’” In the end, I’m not the type to blame the referee for a loss. But if it is a rule, it is a rule.”

So, what are the rules?

As UEFA explained In January 2023 After a European assistant referees course in Rome: “When VAR is in place in a match, assistant referees are advised not to raise the flag if there is suspicion of a potential offside situation.”

UEFA’s head of refereeing, Roberto Rossetti, added: “We need assistant referees to show the traditional abilities of the past. Accuracy and precision in assessing offside. But timing is now a key element of the job, as they have to know when to raise their flag.”

“If they raise the flag at the wrong moment, problems can arise regarding the final decision. We have worked hard on the concept of ‘delaying the flag’ in the course.”

What then?

The victory means that Real Madrid will face Borussia Dortmund in the final next month at Wembley Stadium, after the German team beat Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 at the Parc des Princes in the second leg of the semi-finals on Tuesday to achieve a 2-0 aggregate victory.

This match comes on Saturday, June 1 with kick-off at 8pm GMT (3pm ET / 12pm PT).

(Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)