The Video Assistant Referee (VAR) involved in the decision to award Paris Saint-Germain's controversial injury-time penalty against Newcastle has on Wednesday morning been stood down by UEFA hours before a game.
Polish VAR Tomasz Kwiatkowski sent referee Szymon Marciniak to the pitchside monitor in the 96th minute in Paris last night after the ball struck the arm of Tino Livramento.
Marciniak overturned his decision and awarded a penalty, which was converted by Kylian Mbappe to earn PSG a crucial draw that leaves the Magpies’ Champions League fate in the balance.
Kwiatkowski had been due to act as VAR for tonight’s game between Real Sociedad and FC Salzburg, but the role will now be taken on by German official Marco Fritz. The move suggests UEFA believe the decision to advise the spot-kick was a mistake by Kwiatkowski.
"It's absolutely never a penalty... at this level it's a disgrace" 😤@allysbears and @jjenas8 have a strongly opinionated discussion around the awarding of the penalty which cost Newcastle the win...@laura_woodsy | #UCL pic.twitter.com/Da8dMe6dCc
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) November 28, 2023
Livramento was ruled to have handled, despite the ball deflecting onto the right-back’s arm off his body.
A furious Alan Shearer led criticism of the “disgusting” decision. The Magpies were on the brink of a 1-0 victory, having led through Alexander Isak’s first-half strike.
“Do me a f****** favour man,” Toon legend Shearer wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “What a load of s***t. A superb battling away performance from every single player. Shouldn’t be spoilt by a disgusting decision. Well done NUFC.”
All four teams in the Champions League ‘group of death’ can still qualify for the last 16, but Newcastle must beat AC Milan at home in their final game and hope that PSG fail to win away at Borussia Dortmund.
