In Real Madrid’s thrilling 3-2 victory over Barcelona last night, a pivotal moment occurred when Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal appeared to have scored, only for VAR to rule otherwise. The absence of goal-line technology in La Liga came under harsh spotlight as the VAR review took a long time, and did not look conclusive either way. Goal-line technology would have made the process nearly instant, and, most importantly, conclusive.
Despite Barcelona’s protests and claims of superior performance, Images from both Canal + and BeIn demonstrated conclusively that the ball did not fully cross the goal line.
Xavi Hernandez, Barcelona’s coach, expressed frustration at the outcome, stating, “With the game we played, the normal thing is to win, we played better than Madrid at the Bernabéu. We have to tell the fans that we played very well today and we deserved the three points.”
He further commented on the refereeing controversy, saying, “The referee controversy? It’s a shame. I said that I wished the referee would go unnoticed and get the calls right, and he did neither of the two.”
The incident not only reignited debates on the need for goal-line technology but also underscored its urgency within La Liga. As controversies surrounding officiating continue to mar high-profile clashes, the clamor for technological advancements in football officiating grows louder.
SBNATION
