Fans claim Barcelona were ‘robbed’ after Lamine Yamal’s phantom goal was not awarded against Real Madrid on Sunday – but beIN Sports believe they’ve proven it did not cross the line.
Yamal thought he had put Barca 2-1 ahead when he seemingly flicked the ball in after a corner, but Andriy Lunin palmed the ball away and the referee waved play on.
VAR couldn’t confirm if it had crossed the line with only two angles available and LaLiga president Javier Tebas has since sought to defend the division’s lack of goal-line technology.
With Real Madrid going on to win 3-2 thanks to a late Jude Bellingham goal, the controversy has become a flashpoint.
Qatar’s state-run broadcaster beIN Sports recreated the ghost goal and their images appear to show that a slither of the ball had not crossed the line.
Lamine Yamal’s ghost goal against Real Madrid went unawarded and fans believe he and Barcelona were ‘robbed’
His strike appeared to have crossed the line but it wasn’t given. LaLiga has no goal-line technology and VAR did not award a goal
As seen in the top left image, a slither of the ball did not cross the line according to beIN Sports
Social media commenters believe Barcelona were ‘robbed’ of a goal as they went on to lose
However, it has not stopped the outrage and fans believe Barcelona were ‘robbed’. Moreover, new angles have emerged which appear to show the ball crossing the line.
‘BEING NEUTRAL, BARCELONA HAS BEEN ROBBED!’ one person wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
‘Barcelona was actually robbed in that game if we are being honest,’ another chimed.
‘BARCELONA IS GETTING ROBBED IN FRONT OF MILLIONS OF VIEWERS!’ one wrote.
‘Barcelona robbed 3 times this ain’t fair,’ another said.
‘Some things will never change Barcelona got robbed home and away and in that Supercopa final,’ another wrote.
Yamal, 16, would have been the youngest El Clasico scorer in history if his effort had been given.
Andreas Christensen had given Barca the lead at the Bernabeu before Vinicius Junior levelled from the penalty spot.
LaLiga president Javier Tebas has stood behind the league’s lack of goal-line technology
A new angle emerged where Yamal’s (bottom left) effort looked to have crossed the line, with Real Madrid goalkeeper Andriy Lunin shoveling the ball away
Yamal’s ungiven goal meant the game remained 1-1 until the 69th minute, when Fermin Lopez put Xavi’s side ahead.
But Madrid mounted a comeback, with Lucas Vasquez restoring parity four minutes later and Bellingham cruelly sealing three points with a 91st-minute winner.
The title race is all but over now, with Madrid 11 points ahead of Barcelona with six games left. Had Barca won, that gap would have been five points.
LaLiga’s stance on goal-line technology is different to those like the Premier League, who have the technology to sort such incidents in seconds with officials receiving a signal on their watch telling them whether the ball has crossed the line or not.
Spanish outlet El Larguero reported that La Liga president Javier Tebas does not want to pay the £2.6 million the technology costs.
Fans couldn’t believe that Yamal’s strike wasn’t given as a goal but Tebas quickly defended his league’s lack of technology.
The LaLiga president posted a series of articles about moments where goal-line technology has made mistakes, including an infamous phantom goal from Sheffield United‘s Premier League clash with Aston Villa in 2020.
Tebas wrote ‘no comment’ alongside the images on X, in a clear response the the criticism.
Jude Bellingham scored a stoppage-time winner to pretty much secure the LaLiga title
Barcelona boss Xavi raged afterwards, claiming ‘the referee did not get a single decision right’
Meanwhile, Barcelona coach Xavi raged at more perceived refereeing injustice after Lamal’s phantom goal.
‘I’m not going to say anything about the referee because I will be banned if I do but it was there for all to see,’ he said. ‘We were the better team tonight and we deserved to win.
‘The referee did not get a single decision right. It’s a disgrace and we should not remain silent.
‘I hoped the referee would either go unnoticed or get his decisions right but it was neither of those two things.’
