UEFA acknowledges Barcelona's entitlement to a penalty against Atletico, and settles its position on the "Vinicius law"
Barça bowed out of the tournament in the quarter-finals at the hands of the Rojiblancos
Roberto Rosetti, the head of refereeing at the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), explained on Thursday that touching the ball with the hand inside the penalty area following a goal kick will result in a penalty from now on, regardless of whether the player intended to put the ball into play.
Presenting the refereeing updates for the new season in Monaco, Rosetti pointed out that this clarification follows the controversial incident in last season's Champions League clash between Barcelona and Atletico Madrid. Atletico defender Marc Pubill touched the ball with his hand, holding it down on the pitch, before passing it with his foot, despite the fact that goalkeeper Juan Musso had already taken the goal kick.
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UEFA's new instructions on video assistant referee (VAR) technology also came up, with Rosetti stressing the need for referees to make their own decisions on the pitch. The video referee, he insisted, must not become a tool for re-refereeing every incident, as reported by the Spanish radio station "Cope".
He said: "We want them to be firm. The video assistant referee is a major project, but we want the referees on the pitch to make the decisions. We do not want the video assistant referee to re-referee, and we do not want referees who wait for it to intervene. We want clear evidence and clear errors that call for VAR intervention. We do not like microscopic situations."
Rosetti presented a set of updates to the laws of refereeing, already explained to players, coaches and clubs, aimed at unifying refereeing standards in UEFA competitions on and off the pitch and ensuring greater consistency in decisions.
Time-wasting during substitutions falls under the amendments too. A player who takes more than 10 seconds to leave the pitch can now be penalised, alongside clarifications on how to handle injury situations and the resumption of play after goals.
The Vinícius law
UEFA will not apply the rule of showing a red card to a player who covers his mouth while talking to an opponent, the Vinicius law, in its competitions, Rosetti explained, contrary to what was applied at the World Cup. The referee can show a yellow card if he considers the act to be unsporting behaviour, and a disciplinary measure may follow.
He said: "We have seen players asking for a red card just because an opponent covers his mouth, and we do not like that."
On identification, he confirmed that the video assistant referee will intervene in the event of a mistake when a second yellow card is shown, adding: "I am sure we will see few interventions due to errors in identification in our competitions."
Respecting the rule that only the captain of each team may speak to the referee also drew a firm line from Rosetti, who said: "We do not like players surrounding the referee, and anyone who approaches the referee will get a yellow card."
