UEFA Responds: Why Was Julián Álvarez's Penalty Against Atlético Canceled?

In the world of football, this Thursday, there is no other topic of discussion than the controversial penalty canceled for Julián Álvarez in the shootout that decided the round of 16 Champions League match between Atlético de Madrid and Real Madrid (2-2 aggregate, 2-4 on penalties). The Algerian referee Szymon Marciniak canceled, after a VAR call, the penalty taken by the Argentine forward (second in the shootout) for having touched the ball with both feet at the moment of striking.

To settle the controversy, UEFA issued a statement responding to the claims from the 'colchonero' team regarding what clearly seemed like a historic robbery. "Although it was minimal, the player made contact with the ball with the supporting foot before shooting, as shown in the attached video", begins the highest body of European football. In this regard, UEFA justifies the decision to cancel the Argentine forward's penalty based on rule 14.1, which establishes the VAR call in similar situations.

As it was a decision from the VOR room, the main referee opted to cancel the penalty, without going to the monitor to review the action personally. The shootout continued with successful penalties from Fede Valverde and Ángel Correa, misses from Lucas Vázquez and Marcos Llorente, and the fifth and decisive penalty scored by Antonio Rüdiger. Madrid advanced to the quarter-finals for the fifth consecutive season, where Arsenal awaits them.

UEFA Will Request a Review of the Double Touch Rule for Penalty Kicks

Finally, in its statement, UEFA assures that "it will engage in discussions with FIFA and IFAB to determine if the rule should be reviewed in cases where a double touch is clearly unintentional". The International Football Association Board (IFAB) is the body responsible for establishing the rules of world football, and for the upcoming season, no modifications regarding penalty kicks have been approved.

In this regard, the problem lies in decision-making without compelling evidence. The video shared by UEFA does not provide sufficient reasons to cancel Julián Álvarez's penalty, as the contact of the Argentine with his supporting foot (the left) is minimal and practically imperceptible. If there had been an evident touch, the ball would have moved to the right, which did not happen in this case.

What can be seen in the video used by VAR is that the Atlético forward makes contact with both feet at the moment of shooting. It is here that the decision to cancel the goal lies, as rule 14:1 of IFAB states that "the kicker must not play the ball again until it has touched another player". Nevertheless, the controversy continues, again benefiting Real Madrid. Would VAR have acted the same way if a 'merengue' player was the one taking the penalty? A look at history provides the answer. In the end, Diego Simeone had already warned recently, "This has been happening for 100 years...".