Bayern Munich’s Champions League semifinal tie against Paris Saint Germain was one defined by two very good teams going head to head and one having to fall by the wayside. But, unfortunately, the football was not the only focus of the match. Multiple refereeing decisions in this tie were roundly criticized, none more than the handball decisions that went in favor of the Parisians.
First there was a handball called on Alphonso Davies in the first leg, which led to a penalty concession against the Bavarians.
Then Nuno Mendes halted a dangerous attack with his arm, which could have led to his being awarded a second yellow card only for Konrad Laimer to be penalized for a handball prior to the Paris player’s infraction. Finally, a clearance by fellow Portuguese player Vitinha found the outstretched arm of João Neves in the box but was waved away as not a penalty.
Naturally, Laimer was going to be asked by reporters about the Mendes handball incident and what his reading of the situation was. The Austrian, clearly unhappy, had a fair bit to say about the incident:
“You don’t feel it during the game itself. I thought I had played the ball with my stomach, and then Mendes with his hand,” Laimer explained (as captured by @iMiaSanMia). “The referee whistled for handball against me five seconds later. That’s really strange. Things could definitely have gone better for us today, including the other handball [on João Neves].”
The reporter followed up by pointing out that the handball on Laimer was called by the fourth official. “Since when does the fourth official intervene in the game? I’ve never experienced that before,” the Austrian pointed out. “But that’s not my business; I can’t change it now anyway. That would have been a decisive moment if PSG had lost a player so early. In games like these, it comes down to a few small details. I always felt we could turn things around. But today it wasn’t enough. That’s really tough.”
There will be further questions and inquiries about the decisions made in the match. But what is set in stone is that the Bavarians are out of the Champions League and will have to gather themselves to try again next season.
If you are looking for more Bayern Munich and German national team coverage, check out the latest episodes of Bavarian Podcast Works, which you can get on Acast, Spotify, Apple, or any leading podcast distributor…
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