Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone has expressed doubts over the decision to rule out a penalty by Julian Alvarez during their Champions League clash against Real Madrid on Wednesday. The match ended in a 2-2 aggregate draw before Los Blancos secured a 4-2 win on penalties, with Alvarez slipping as he converted his spot-kick in the shoot-out.
Simeone recalled that “the referee said when Julian got to the penalty spot he touched the ball with his standing foot, but the ball did not move.” He added, “But beyond that, which now just serves to argue about whether it should have counted or not, I am proud of my players, I am happy, truly. We competed in an exemplary way. And yes, we could not beat Real Madrid in the Champions League, sure, we could not, but they had a really bad time (against us) again.”
While Simeone stated his hope that the officials got it right, he also questioned the clarity of the decision. “I’ve never seen a penalty where they’ve called the VAR, but well, they would have seen that he touched it, I want to believe, I want to believe they saw he touched it. Raise your hand if anyone saw Julian touch it twice—nobody,” he challenged reporters.
In contrast, Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois noted that he believed Alvarez did indeed touch the ball twice. “In the end it’s a lottery, I felt a little that he had touched it twice, that’s what I told the referee. It is clearly not easy to see, but it’s a bit of bad luck for them there,” Courtois told Movistar, while also criticizing Atletico’s constant complaints about officiating in Spain.
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti backed the decision, stating, “They detected it, when we realised there was this doubt they had already detected it on VAR. I saw it; I think he touches it with his left foot, a second touch.”
The differing opinions highlight the intense scrutiny surrounding VAR decisions in high-stakes matches, and while Simeone remains uncertain about the ruling, the debate underscores the razor-thin margins that can shape European football’s biggest stages.
