Article by Adrian Duţă – Published on Wednesday, 06 May 2026 23:14 / Updated on Thursday, 07 May 2026 00:34
-
In the round it was 5-4 for PSG, in Paris.
-
Arsenal is the first finalist of the Champions League. The last act will take place on May 30, in Budapest
In the 31st minute, the Bayern players asked for a penalty, after Vitinha cleared the hand of Joao Neves, in the PSG box. Referee Joao Pinheiro missed a shot from 11 yards, then was assaulted by Vincent Kompany's Bavarians.
The Portuguese “Central” applied one of the newest regulations in arbitration, “unexpected ball”. He didn't give a penalty because Neves had no intention of handling the ball, being unwittingly hit by Vitinha's clearance.
What the press in Germany writes about the controversial phase from Bayern – PSG
“Uli Hoenes was causing a scandal in the stands, and down at the edge of the field, the entire FC Bayern bench was protesting vehemently. Gosh!
From the point of view of Munich, Paris Saint-Germain defender João Neves had deflected the ball irregularly in his own penalty area after a clearance by his colleague Vitinha in the second leg of the Champions League semi-finals (min. 31).
However, referee João Pinheiro, also from Portugal, allowed play to continue after brief contact with the video referee. From the point of view of the regulation, the decision was correct.
According to the International Football Association Board (IFAB), the rule is as follows: if a player is hit in the hand by the ball following a shot or header by a teammate, it is not considered a handball.
The exception occurs only if the ball goes directly into the opponent's goal or if the player scores immediately afterwards – in this case, the opposing team receives a direct free kick,” wrote the journalists from sport.de.
Vitinha clears the ball from his own penalty area. João Neves is on the track and blocks the ball with his hand up and away from his body. The center lets the game continue and the VAR does not intervene. This is due to the fact that the handball occurred as a result of a clearing action by a teammate, a situation in which intent is not assumed.
– IMAGE
This is a penalty kick and must always be a penalty kick as it is a deliberate movement towards the ball.
Manuel Gräfe, former referee, for BILD
