VAR Controversy Takes Center Stage as Inter Milan Eliminates Barcelona
Drama was in the air at the San Siro, but it wasn't just the end-to-end action that had fans buzzing. Inter Milan scraped past Barcelona 7-6 on aggregate to book a spot in the Champions League final, but the match will be remembered just as much for its refereeing controversy as for the goals. Former Arsenal boss Arsène Wenger didn't hold back, calling out what he described as a ‘fake penalty’—a decision that has left the football world divided.
The tie itself was a thriller. Barcelona clawed back from 2-0 down, with Raphinha seemingly scoring the deciding goal in the 87th minute. But as the celebrations died down, Inter’s Francesco Acerbi leveled the score in stoppage time. Extra time brought even more tension. Davide Frattesi’s strike finally sealed it for Inter Milan, crowning their dramatic comeback and crushing Barcelona’s hopes.
Yet, it wasn’t the footballing heroics that stole the headlines. The real storm erupted over a first-half penalty involving Lautaro Martínez. The referee awarded Inter Milan a spot kick after a VAR review, claiming Barcelona’s Aleix Cubarsí had brought down Martínez inside the box. Watching replays, it was easy to see why tempers flared—Martínez went down quite theatrically, and in real time, the challenge from Cubarsí looked clean.
Wenger Calls Out ‘Fake Penalty’ and Questions VAR Impact
The talk of the night? Wenger’s scathing assessment of modern officiating. He insisted that slow-motion VAR replays only serve to confuse things. According to Wenger, these scrutinized angles can make innocent tackles look sinister, especially when attacking players—feeling even the lightest of touches—are quick to go down. “What you see in slow motion isn’t what’s actually happening on the pitch,” Wenger argued, claiming Martínez exaggerated the contact and played for the penalty. The referee, Szymon Marciniak—regarded as one of FIFA’s best—wasn’t spared from criticism. Wenger stressed that decisions like these harm football’s sense of fair play.
And it wasn’t just the penalty causing uproar. There was a possible handball by Acerbi missed in the build-up, plus a controversial challenge on Gerard Martín right before Inter’s crucial equalizer. Each moment stoked the Barcelona bench and filled social feeds with heated debate. Fans and pundits alike were left asking: is VAR genuinely helping, or is it just making things more chaotic?
Barcelona players and staff were left fuming, arguing that key moments had tilted the game in Inter’s favor. These decisions revived old arguments about player simulation and the limits of technology in refereeing. Inter Milan, for their part, felt vindicated—claiming VAR had simply caught what the on-field official missed. One thing’s for sure: this clash has added more fuel to the never-ending VAR controversy, questioning how technology and human judgment can truly coexist in the world’s biggest matches.
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