The referee decided that the Mattress Makers player Julian Alvarez scored a penalty kick in violation of the rules.
The return match of the 1/8 finals of the 2024/25 Champions League between Madrid's Atletico and Real ended in a loud scandal.
After Real's 0:1 defeat in the second leg (the first game ended with a 2:1 victory for the Los Blancos), the teams went to a penalty shootout, in which Carlo Ancelotti's men won a ticket to the quarter-finals.
A very controversial situation arose during the penalty kick by Atletico forward Julian Alvarez . The Argentinean converted his shot despite his supporting leg slipping. However, the referee of the match, Pole Szymon Marciniak, after a tip from the video assistants, cancelled the goal.
The reason for the disallowed penalty scored by Alvarez was a double touch of the ball. As Julian was running up, his left foot went and touched the ball before he could shoot with his right. According to the rules, in such cases the goals do not count, and in a penalty shootout there is no right to a retake.
Álvarez's penalty is overturned by VAR po double touch
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As it turned out, Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois asked the referees to pay attention to this moment: “I felt that Julian made two touches, so I told the referee about it. Yes, he was a little unlucky,” the Belgian goalkeeper said.
After Atletico lost the penalty shootout, there were many videos online from different angles of the incident. However, it is still difficult to determine whether Alvarez's goal was rightly disallowed.
Did he touch it twice? Unfair elimination for Atlético? What do you think? #realmadrid #atletico #atleticodemadrid #ucl #uefachampionsleague #championsleague pic.twitter.com/NjNIHbqRBt
— MARCA in English (@MARCAinENGLISH) March 13, 2025
Clear as day? Madrid moves to squares and surrounding areas? #realmadrid #atletico #atleticodemadrid #ucl #uefachampionsleague #championsleague pic.twitter.com/9kR49t9fYK
— MARCA in English (@MARCAinENGLISH) March 13, 2025
At the post-match press conference, Atletico head coach Diego Simeone expressed his indignation at the referees' decision.
“The referee told us that Julian touched the ball with his other foot before he took the shot, but he didn't move the ball. I've never seen VAR review a penalty in a shootout, but they probably saw that he touched it. I want to believe that they saw that he touched the ball.
“Did you see him touch the ball twice? I ask everyone who was in the stadium and saw him touch the ball twice and see the ball move, please come up and raise your hand. I don't see anyone who raised their hand, so that's all I want to say,” Simeone said.
Diego Simeone: “If any of you have Julien touch ball twice, raise your hand. Come on… no? No one?” pic.twitter.com/CS41vfzCWs
— All About Argentina (@AlbicelesteTalk) March 12, 2025
It should be noted that the goal of Real Madrid in this match was defended by the Belgian Thibaut Courtois. The Ukrainian goalkeeper of the Blancos Andriy Lunin spent the match on the bench.
In the quarter-finals of the Champions League, Real will face London's Arsenal, led by Ukrainian Oleksandr Zinchenko, who beat Dutch PSV in the 1/8 finals.