Of the four major European football leagues, the
Bundesliga was the last to kick off, with its first matchday having been held
this past weekend. The most highly-anticipated match to be played was that
between overwhelming favourites Bayern Munich and last season’s surprise
package Hoffenheim, who defied the odds to finish third in the league.
To the surprise of many, Hoffenheim kept it close for
most of the match. However, an 82nd-minute penalty scored by Robert Lewandowski
and a 90th-minute goal from Arjen Robben helped the Bavarian juggernauts to a
3-1 victory to begin what is likely to be the first match of yet another
Bundesliga title run.
However, this match was also notable for not one, not
two, but three questionable officiating decisions.
One of the main talking points of the match was the
penalty decision, as it was a very controversial call.
In the first place, the fact that the penalty was even
given in the first place was notable, as replays showed that Håvard Nordtveit of Hoffenheim did
not make significant contact with Bayern winger Franck Ribéry when Ribéry went
down in the penalty area. Even Bayern coach Niko Kovač said that it should not
have been given.
Generally, in
this situation, the video assistant referee (VAR) would have been consulted,
but this time, such was not the case. Because of this, the referee’s incorrect decision
to award the penalty remained.
However, what arguably stood out even more was the
penalty itself.
With the game tied at 1-1, Bayern superstar Lewandowski
stepped forward to take the penalty. His shot was saved by Hoffenheim goalkeeper
Oliver Baumann, but Robben rushed in to clean up and put the follow-up shot in
the net.
The referee then ordered Lewandowski to retake the
penalty because Robben had begun his run into the penalty area too early. On
his second attempt, the Polish striker dispatched the penalty.
Although on the surface, there appears to be no issue
with the events that took place, consider the following.
What if Robben had missed on his follow-up shot?
If that had happened, Bayern would essentially have been
rewarded for having one of their players break a key rule with regard to
penalties, because it would have granted Lewandowski another chance to score
his penalty.
This is notable because experienced players can often
tell if the penalty-taker is about to miss with his shot. If they believe he is
going to miss, they may exploit the rules by encroaching into the penalty area
to force a retake.
In such situations, I believe that the referee should use
his discretion and not order the penalty to be retaken.
In this case, the referee was fortunate that Robben
scored on the follow-up, because although he made a bad call, it worked out for
the best in the end.
The third incident was yet another which involved the VAR,
although in this case, it was Hoffenheim who benefited from it.
Bayern’s Leon Goretzka took a shot that caromed off
teammate Thomas Müller en route to the back of the net. Although the ball just
happened to deflect off Müller, the VAR incorrectly ruled it as an intentional
handball, and what should have been Bayern’s third goal was therefore not
counted.
In spite of all the praise that the VAR system has
received, particularly during the World Cup, incidents such as this prove that
the system is not infallible and may therefore require further tweaks.
While in this match, because Bayern went on to score a
third goal, the officiating errors did not change the overall result, it is
what could happen in other matches that is a cause for concern.
Whether the errors are made with or without the use of
the VAR system does not matter, because either way, the net effect on the game
is the same.
Hopefully, as the season progresses, matches like this
one become the exception rather than the norm, because the myriad of errors
committed by the referee ruined the game. Even more than that, in leagues with
close title races or in knockout games, refereeing errors can change who will
end up taking home the trophy.
It’s time for referees across Europe to take note and
step up their game.
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