Another matchday in LaLiga, another refereeing controversy.
Real Madrid hosted Real Betis Balompié at the Santiago Bernabéu in a match corresponding to the fourth round of the Spanish league championship, LaLiga EA Sports.
The Merengues, in urgent need of a victory after drawing 1-1 against UD Las Palmas in the previous match, took the lead in the 67th minute after an excellent pass from Valverde and a good finish from Mbappé, who scored his first league goal to open the scoring. Minutes later, he would score his second goal from the penalty spot.
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However, controversy arose in the 72nd minute when Vinicius faced Betis goalkeeper Rui Silva and fell in the box. After a VAR review, the referee determined that the contact with the Portuguese goalkeeper warranted a penalty for Real Madrid, a decision that drew criticism from a legendary former player like Marco van Basten.
In an interview with Ziggo Sport, the forward with a past at Ajax and AC Milan claimed that the penalty was “ridiculous” and that it was a “stupid” decision by the referee and the VAR team, asserting that the play was an attacking foul by Vinicius that was misinterpreted by the officiating crew:
“Vinicius himself kicks the goalkeeper in the legs, who didn’t even do anything. How stupid do they have to be in VAR to see that as a penalty? This is the typical example that VAR has never played a football match. If they had, they would know.”
This is not the first time that refereeing in Spain has been heavily questioned by both the participants in the matches and external voices.
Despite the complaints from the Dutch forward, a three-time Ballon d’Or winner, the main referee, aided by VAR, pointed to the penalty spot, and Vinicius, the designated taker for Real Madrid, chose to pass the penalty to his teammate Kylian Mbappé, who scored his first double for the Merengues in the 2-0 victory against the Verdiblancos, a match in which Vitor Roque made his debut and Endrick saw action from the bench.
