Why Arsenal didn’t get a penalty in their Champions League final loss to PSG
Here’s why Arsenal didn’t get a penalty during extra time in their Champions League final loss to Paris Saint-Germain.
The match ended 1-1, but PSG won 4-3 on penalties in Budapest. Kai Havertz scored early on for Chelsea, but Ousmane Dembele equalized for PSG with a penalty at 65 minutes after a foul on Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.
In the shootout, both Arsenal’s Eberechi Eze and PSG’s Nuno Mendes missed their shots. Then Gabriel Magalhaes missed the crucial penalty for Arsenal, leading to big celebrations from PSG as they claimed their second straight Champions League title.
However, things might have been different if the referee had given Arsenal a penalty in the first half of extra time. Arsenal players thought Noni Madueke should’ve gotten a penalty when he was tackled by Mendes in the box. Mendes pulled him down, but there was some doubt because Madueke appeared to grab Mendes first, and it wasn’t clear if it was enough for a penalty.
Referee Daniel Siebert and the VAR team decided not to award a penalty, and the game went on. Arsenal’s coach Mikel Arteta said after the match that it could easily have been a penalty. Midfielder Declan Rice admitted he hadn’t watched the incident again but thought, from what he saw, it looked like Madueke was ahead of Mendes and it reminded him of a similar penalty they got earlier in the tournament. He was disappointed because he expected the referee to check the VAR.
On the other hand, former Premier League referee Graham Scott supported the officials’ decision. Speaking for The Athletic, he said many people might feel a penalty should’ve been given, but he believes the referee was right to stick with his original call rather than give in to pressure.