90 minutes have passed at the San Siro. A minute of additional time has passed. Another flutter of play on that overly occupied right wing. A curling cross towards Ansu Fati gets intercepted by Denzel Dumfries. The Barca players shout, shriek, and raise their hands claiming something. A penalty. The game plays on. It halts. The referee speaks and listens through his earpiece to the Virtual Assistant Referee.
The replay unfolds before the eyes of the fans. The ball curls past Dumfries’s head, beyond his chest, and straight against the Inter player’s hand and cleared away resultantly. Culés rejoice, the Barca fans continue their appeals, the referee nods up, and….. whistles to play on.
In a game where Pedri’s equalizer was disallowed due to an unlucky handball incident as the ball was deflected into Ansu Fati’s hand by Inter keeper Andre Onana, and a game where Hakan Çalhanoğlu may as well have potentially been sent off near the 70th-minute mark for his high-footed tackle on Barcelona captain Sergio Busquets, the inclination to deprive Barca fans and players alike of any sort of joy or a momentary glimpse of hope could not have been more apparent.
Despite the blunderous tactical decisions, rued opportunities, and embarrassing decision-making from the Referee and the VAR officials, Barcelona may as well have escaped with at least a justified penalty for the handball. But it was not to be.
Just like that fateful night in Munich, where Alphonso Davie’s clip on Dembele was not awarded as a penalty, neither was tonight about to provide any form of jubilation for the Blaugrana. The Catalans remain without a single penalty awarded all season as of this Matchday 03 in the Uefa Champions League.
This streak continues to frustrate regardless of the competition, as Barcelona are kept away from getting that added edge of being able to add additional, and potentially crucial goals to their output this season.
Is it just plain bad luck?
or is it right to feel hard done by the officials on nights like these?
One thing remains a constant. Disappointment either way.
