Was VAR Right in Not Allowing a Penalty to the Challenge on Bukayo Saka amidst the Arsenal vs Bayern Munich Clash?

VAR Controversy surrounds Arsenal vs Bayern Munich UCL first-leg clash

The VAR was once again at the cusp of things and it was to be a crucial Champions League fixture in the form of a quarterfinal first-leg between Arsenal and Bayern Munich. The match ended with a scoreline of 2-2, in what could prove to be a nail-biting second leg when both sides meet each other for the second leg in Germany.

During the second half of the match Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka faced a challenge from Bayern’s goalkeeper Manuel Neuer inside the final third. The majority of the fans inside the stadium felt it was a dead eye penalty the moment Saka went down on the ground. However, the match referee decided to wave off the claim as he suggested that it was a fair challenge by the visitor’s goalkeeper.

Arsenal players and manager Mikel Arteta seemed in dire shock that they hadn’t been awarded a penalty in that scenario. The VAR did have a look at it and after various replays, they decided to stick with the on-field decision. Various football pundits have since then stated their opinions on the verdict given by the officials.

While some of them agreed with the point that Saka did change his direction at the crucial moment causing Neuer to bring him down, so it should have been a penalty. On the other hand, few inflicted that the goalkeeper didn’t foul Arsenal’s winger intentionally as Saka’s trailing foot itself caught Manuel Neur and caused him to fall.

Bayern Munich manager Thomas Tuchel felt his team should have been awarded a penalty by VAR

As it turned out on the day Arsenal wasn’t the only team to be feeling aggrieved of being denied a penalty against Bayern Munich in the first leg of their UCL quarterfinal match at the Emirates. The visitor’s manager Thomas Tuchel believed that his team should been given a penalty for one of the incidents during the game.

The Bayern’s manager was even more disappointed in the explanation given to him after their disallowed penalty. He reportedly stated –

“What makes us really angry is the explanation on the field. He (Ref) told our players that it’s a ‘kid’s mistake’ and he will not give a penalty like this in a quarter-final. This is a horrible, horrible explanation”.

From the statement of Thomas Tuchel, it is quite evident that he firmly thinks his side has been denied a crucial moment to authorize their claim in the match against Arsenal. However, both teams will now be focused on the second leg as they have everything to play for in that match. The winner of that clash will be heading straight to the semi-finals of this season’s UCL campaign.

A draw might not have been the worst of results for Bayern Munich on the day as playing away from home in the first leg is always apprehended as a difficult task when it comes to the history of the tournament but they seem to have passed the test with flying colours.

Also Read: Serge Gnabry Injury: Bayern star set to miss second leg against Arsenal