Real Madrid managed to withstand the attacking tide of Manchester City yesterday, Tuesday, in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final, and came out with the slightest damage after the end of the match, with City winning 4-3.

Although City advanced twice by two goals, Real Madrid managed to reduce the difference each time, and one of them was through a penalty kick that sparked controversy over its validity.

Laporte's hand touch

And 8 minutes before the end of the original time of the match, the ball hit the hand of Manchester City defender Aymeric Laporte when he rose in a joint ball with Real striker Karim Benzema inside the area of ​​operations, and the Romanian referee Istvan Kovacs did not delay in calculating a penalty kick.

The ball first hit Laporte's head before it rebounded to his hand, which prompted Manchester City players to protest against the referee based on the law that stipulates that a handball is not counted if the ball bounces from the player's foot or head directly to his hand or arm.

Football law and hand touch

According to Article 12 of the Football Law, handball is not considered intentional, that is, it is not considered a violation in 3 cases:

  • If the hand or arm is close to the body and the player tries to dodge the ball, but fails.

  • If the hand or arm is far from the body but within the normal range of motion of the hand or arm.

  • If the ball rebounds from the player's foot or head directly to his hand or arm.

  • If a player tries to support his body by placing his arm on the ground during a fall and the ball is caught by hand or arm.

Manchester City @Cityarabia settles the Champions League semi-final first leg with an exciting 4-3 victory over its guest Real Madrid @realmadridarab

Report |

Amin Al Sabti @aminesebtibein pic.twitter.com/snYXlc67FE

— beIN SPORTS News (@beINSPORTSNews) April 26, 2022

Expert opinion on Real Madrid's penalty kick

And the Spanish newspaper "SPORT" reported that the Romanian referee awarded the penalty because the Manchester City defender's hand was not in a normal position, and it was high above the shoulder level.

And the Spanish newspaper “MARCA” quoted refereeing expert Pavel Fernandez as saying that the penalty kick was correct due to the position of the Spanish defender’s arm, which was abnormally extended.

For its part, the Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo quoted the refereeing expert, Cesar Monteiro, as saying that referee Kovacs was successful in his decisions during yesterday's match, including the decision to award the penalty kick.

"In a competitive match with a fast pace of play, the Romanian referee Kovacs was always close to various shots, and he applied the principle of opportunity well in the shot of the fourth goal for Manchester City, which was scored by Bernardo Silva in the 74th minute," Monteiro said.

He added, "The three cards that the referee made famous in the face of Guardiola, Fernandinho and Nacho were deserved, and he was correct in calculating the penalty kick after the handball from Laporte."

The date of the return match between Real Madrid and Manchester City

The meeting between Real Madrid and Manchester City will be renewed next Wednesday in the return match at the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid.