The rule which means Bayern Munich were denied penalty vs PSG

Bayern Munich were left feeling incensed in the first half after they felt they were denied a clear penalty after Vitinha attempted to clear the danger for PSG, but it struck the arm of his teammate Joao Neves.

While it was clear and obvious for everyone to see that the ball had struck the arm of the PSG player, a penalty was not awarded, which left Bayern, their fans and football supporters around the world scratching their heads as to why they had been denied the chance to equalise from the penalty spot after Ousmane Dembele gave the French side the lead in the third minute.

One outspoken critic about the decision was Jamie Carragher on the CBS coverage of the game, as he believed Bayern had been denied a stonewall penalty.

The former Liverpool star said: “I’m watching this and I’m absolutely fuming. Joao Neves has got his arm out like he’s directing traffic; it’s a clear handball, a stonewall penalty for Bayern – and the referee just waves it away! How is that not given? We saw the same nonsense yesterday with Arsenal against Atletico, shocking decisions costing big teams at the worst possible moment.

“These moments decide the fate of a club, you know? One refereeing howler and your whole season, your Champions League dream, it’s gone. At this level, semi-final of the Champions League, it’s absurd. You cannot be making mistakes like that. It’s not Sunday league – it’s the biggest stage in club football. Unbelievable.”

However, it appears that the decision by the referee not to award the penalty was the correct one, and so the officials should be commended for knowing the rules and not being swayed by the occasion or atmosphere.

The rules are clearly written by IFAB regarding this situation, which meant that the penalty should not be awarded.

Written, it said: “A player is hit on the hand/arm by the ball from a teammate’s kick/header?

“This is not a handball (unless the ball goes directly into the opponents’ goal or the player scores immediately afterwards, in which case a direct freekick is awarded to the other team).

PSG would progress to the Champions League final on an aggregate score of 6-5 over Bayern, after Harry Kane found an equaliser in stoppage time in the second half to make it a nervy finish; however, the French side will now defend their title against Arsenal in Budapest as the clash finished 1-1 in Munich.

Luis Enrique has the chance to win his third Champions League as a manager after winning the competition last year with the French side and in 2015 with Barcelona, while Arsenal will be looking for their maiden title in this competition.