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Jude Bellingham HEAVILY criticized the decision to allow Kai Havertz to retake his vital penalty kick in Chelsea’s Champions League victory over Borussia Dortmund ON Tuesday evening.
Chelsea defeated Dortmund 2-0 at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday, securing a 2-1 victory on aggregate and advancing to the quarterfinals of the Champions League. Graham Potter’s squad deserved to win, but the deciding goal after Raheem Sterling’s opening goal was debatable.
VAR directed referee Danny Makkelie to the pitch side monitor to reevaluate a handball call against Dortmund defender Marius Wolf.
As a result, the home team was awarded a penalty. Makkelie granted a penalty kick, which Havertz missed, before receiving a second attempt due to encroachment.
Chelsea resisted pressure from Dortmund to advance to the quarter finals of the competition.
Havertz’s second attempt was accurate, as he buried his effort into the corner.
Bellingham – ‘I Don’t Want to Get in Trouble’
However, England midfielder Bellingham believes that the initial decision to penalize Wolf was excessive and that the encroaching call was a “joke.”
Speaking to BT Sport, the young midfielder was adamant that it should not have been allowed.
“I’ve not seen the incident back. From where I was it looked like he was pretty close and I’m not sure what else he can do with his hands…” Bellingham said.
He was then shown a replay, but was still not convinced by the decision.
“It’s a yard or two away, I’m not too sure,” Bellingham explained, “I don’t want to get in trouble, I’ve paid enough to them lot.”
The Dortmund star continued to make his point in the post-match interview.
“But yeah, I think that in itself was disappointing and the fact they’ve had a retake, it’s a joke. I think for every penalty, especially when you have such a slow run-up, there are going to be people encroaching into the box by a yard or so,” he said.
“But that’s the game, I suppose, he’s made a decision and we’ve had to live with it,” he added.
The FIFA regulations on encroachment indicate that the referee officials made the correct decision in permitting Havertz to retake his penalty kick after his initial attempt hit the post.
This was because the rebound was cleared by a Dortmund player who had been inside the D area when Havertz struck the ball from the edge of the area.
According to the rules, if the defensive team enters the penalty area and the penalty kick is scored, the goal stands. But, if the penalty is missed, it is retaken.
Former Premier League Ref Has His Take
Former Premier League referee Peter Walton explained what happened on BT Sport following the controversial incident.
“That is encroachment, yes,” the ex-referee stated.
“He’s clearly in the area there, and what it is is he has a material effect on the ball,” he continued.
“The ball comes back off the post and when you see it, it’s the player who’s encroached who clears the ball.”
Either way, the decision stood post-match and Graham Potter’s Chelsea advance to the quarter-final stage of the competition. If Potter can continue to succeed in Europe, it would add a new spin on his so far difficult tenure at the London club.
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