Newcastle had been on the verge of an important away win in the Champions League stage against the struggling Parisians.
UEFA has removed a video review official (VAR) that awarded Paris Saint-Germain’s (PSG) a controversial penalty shot against Newcastle United in the Champions League during overtime on Tuesday evening.
UEFA also told Polish referee Tomasz Kwiatkowski, that he will not take charge of video refereeing duties at Wednesday’s Champions League Group D fixture between Real Sociedad and Red Bull Salzburg.
Instead, German referee Marco Fritz will now take on the role.
The decision came after Kwiatkowski ruled in favour of a penalty to Kylian Mbappe to earn the PSG home side a crucial 1-1 draw, which allowed the team to qualify for the 16th round.
Prior to the penalty, Newcastle was on the verge of winning the game and receiving three points when the ball struck the team’s defender Tino Livramento’s chest and bounced onto his arm.
On-field referee Szymon Marciniak initially waved off the decision but Kwiatkowski called on him to review the play , leading to the penalty kick for PSG.
Retired Irish association football referee Dermot Gallagher said the referee succumbed to pressure once sent to the VAR monitor.
Speaking to SkySportsNews, Gallagher said, “You’ve got to be mindful of the fact that when you go to the screen as a referee, you’ve got to make the decision yourself.”
“He could have said ‘no, I’m not giving a penalty.’ He had all options,” Gallagher added.
After the game, Newcastle Manager Eddie Howe said the penalty decision was not right and said, “It was a ricochet that when it is slowed down looks completely different to the live event.”
“The ball hits his chest first, comes up, and hits his hand. But his hand is not in an unnatural position; it is down by his side, but he is in a running motion.” Magpies boss Eddie Howe said.
Earlier this year, amid calls for more clarity in the handball rule, a UEFA panel of storied coaches and former players said that “no handball offense should be called on a player if the ball is previously deflected from his own body, and, in particular when the ball does not go towards the goal.”
“The handball rule, for example, will always be disputed, but we can make it more consistent and aligned with the game’s true nature,” Croatian former footballer Zvonimir Boban said in April.
