It had to happen, eventually. VAR, meant to protect 50/50 offside calls to the millimeter, got it wrong.
For once, offside trap tactician Hansi Flick’s side was on the receiving end of a VAR decider against Barcelona.
A yellow boot mix-up costs Barcelona a crucial goal – Here’s what went wrong
Last night, in the 13th minute of Barcelona’s La Liga clash against Real Sociedad, VAR disallowed Robert Lewandowski‘s goal. Watch it here.
Upon closer inspection, the computer confused Real Sociedad defender’s boot for Lewandowski’s. There’s a strip of yellow on the end of Nayef Aguerd’s boot that looks like Lewy’s yellow Nike Mercurials. Zooming in, the foot of #21 is behind the Pole’s; simple as that.
After the match, Barcelona winger Raphina shared a comical Instagram story post exaggerating the size of Lewandowski’s feet.
The disallowed goal and Sociedad’s 33rd-minute decisive strike proved the difference. While Barca fans are reeling from a missed draw and undefeated domestic season, head coach Hansi Flick maintained the team’s composure. After all, Barca still leads the table by six points over second-place Real Madrid.
Said Flick after the match: “The referee, it was not his fault, we are humans, we make mistakes and today was a big mistake.”
The referee acknowledged the error and was allegedly seen telling Flick in the locker room, “What can I do?” Overdependence on technology is a thing. However, the official referring federation (RFEF) has stayed silent on the situation, ensuring that no one doubts the technology Gods.
Above all, the loss ended the Blaugrana’s La Liga winning streak but also served as a much-needed wake-up call. After the early negated goal, Barcelona continued the game with zero shots on target.
Real Sociedad held their own, especially against a Lamine Yamal-less Barcelona which struggled to create chances
“We have to respect every opinion, but after the remarkable performance that we put in, I believe that our win was totally deserved and fair,” Real Sociedad manager Imanol Alguacil told reporters after the match.
Barcelona will look to rebound after the international break with their match against Celta Vigo on the 23rd before taking on Brest in the Champions League. But they may be without La Liga’s leading scorer, Robert Lewandowski, for the foreseeable future. After sustaining a back injury in the Real Sociedad match, the striker was ruled out of international duty.
