The recent defeat of Barcelona has ignited significant controversy within Spanish football circles, following a contentious late goal that decided the match. According to reports from the Spanish press, the Technical Committee of Referees in Spain has taken decisive action in response to the uproar.
The Blaugrana suffered a 1-2 loss against Girona on Monday during the 24th round of La Liga, a result that cost the team, led by German coach Hansi Flick, its position at the top of the table, which was subsequently claimed by arch-rivals Real Madrid. The decisive moment arrived in the 80th minute from a highly disputed play, where Yan Couto was allegedly fouled by Viktor Tsygankov of Girona on the edge of Barcelona’s penalty area. The play continued, culminating in Fran Beltrán scoring the winning goal, much to the visible protest of Barcelona’s players against referee Soto Grado‘s decision.
The newspaper “AS” initially reported that the refereeing committee itself acknowledged an uncalled foul in favor of Couto in the sequence leading to Girona’s goal at the Montilivi stadium. Iturralde González, a refereeing expert for “AS” and Cadena SER radio, elaborated that the goal should have been disallowed, arguing the foul prevented the defender from continuing play and warranted a yellow card for Tsygankov due to recklessness.
Indefinite Suspension for VAR Official in Barcelona-Girona Match
In a new development, “AS” has confirmed that the Technical Committee of Referees, chaired by Fran Soto, has imposed a severe penalty. The Video Assistant Referee for the Barcelona-Girona clash, David Gálvez Rascón, has been suspended indefinitely for his role in the controversial incident.
This decisive move underscores the committee’s stance on the gravity of the officiating error that occurred, highlighting the ongoing scrutiny of VAR’s application in pivotal league moments.
Lighter Sanction for Official in Real Madrid vs. Real Sociedad
In a separate but related adjudication, the same committee has handed down a comparatively milder sanction concerning another high-profile match from the same matchday. The referee in question, Daniel Jesús Trujillo, who served as the VAR official for Real Madrid‘s 4-1 victory over Real Sociedad at the Santiago Bernabéu last Saturday, will be reassigned as an assistant VAR official for his next appointed match.
That encounter saw Vinícius Júnior awarded two penalties against the same defender, Jon Aramburu, both of which he converted. While the committee considered the second penalty incident a complex one to interpret, it concluded that the VAR room should have summoned on-field referee Hernández Maeso to review the monitor, leading to the disciplinary measure.
The contrasting sanctions reveal the committee’s graded approach to officiating controversies, applying the most severe punishment where a clear and impactful error is deemed to have been made without proper intervention.