Tchouameni 'stomps' Lino with studs, says referee Grato on penalty controversy

BeSoccer 5 months ago 3.4k |

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The penalty in the Madrid derby caused controversies. SCREENSHOT/MovistarLaLiga

Real Madrid were left furious by the penalty that gave Atletico the lead on Saturday in the Madrid derby. Although the ball had already passed the players involved in the incident, VAR audio reveals that referee Soto Grato pointed to the spot as Tchouameni's stud made contact with Lino.

Cesar Soto Grato was the referee for Saturday's 1-1 draw between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu. A lot of debate followed the full-time whistle regarding the challenge from Aurelien Tchouameni, who seemingly caught Samuel Lino with his studs as Galan's cross from the right flank approached the penalty box.

The challenge was awarded a penalty following VAR intervention, though no yellow card was given to the Real Madrid defender, as Julian Alvarez stepped up to put the spot-kick in the back of the net and give the 'Colchoneros' the lead in the first half. The Argentine's goal was cancelled out by Kylian Mbappe early into the second half, meaning the two sides had to settle for a point a piece.

The Spanish Football Federation sought to clarify the matter by releasing the VAR audio on Saturday night revealing the conversation between Soto Grato and De Burgos Bengoetxea, on VAR duty for the Madrid derby. Bengoetxea recommended the referee to review the incident ‘to assess a possible penalty’ just past the half-hour mark after Soto Grato had let the play go on.

Conversation between Grato and Bengoetxea in VAR audio

Bengoetxea: "Cesar, when you're in front of the monitor, we'll talk. This is the action that I have on my screen, which is not very clear, but I'm going to show you one with better quality. And now I'm going to show you another one that's better quality, okay? So that you can see the stomp, okay? Pause it at the point of contact so you can see it, please. There you go."

Grato: "Okay, he (Tchouameni) stomps him (Lino) with his studs. Show me another angle. See if you have one that shows it from behind."

Bengoetxea: "These are the ones with the best quality, Cesar. The others are not very clear."

Grato: "Well, I'm going to give the penalty but I'm not going to sanction him (Tchouameni). Just a penalty for Atletico Madrid."