Khaberni - Spanish media confirmed that the referees' committee justified the long delay in reviewing the video assistant referee technology during the Copa del Rey semi-final between Atletico Madrid and Barcelona.
Mundo Deportivo reported that the semi-automatic offside technology was non-functional due to the congestion of players inside the penalty area, forcing the video team to manually draw the offside lines to determine the validity of the goal.
It added: "The controversial moment occurred at the beginning of the second half, as it seemed that Barcelona was getting back into the game despite being down four goals in the first half, after defender Pau Coparsi followed the ball into the net from close range. On the field, there were no major protests, and players prepared to resume play with the start of the routine review from the VAR room."
It continued: "The television replays initially did not show a clear fault, as Robert Lewandowski had touched the ball before it reached Coparsi, and nothing indicated a clear offside at the moment of Fermin Lopez’s shot; however, the review lasted for an extended period, which caused displeasure among the spectators in the stands and prompted the players to maintain their physical readiness during the stoppage."
It further stated: "After about seven minutes, the referee Juan Martinez Munuera announced the goal cancellation due to offside, following the video referee Pablo Gonzalez Fuertes’ recommendation, and as clarified, it appeared that Coparsi's left foot was slightly ahead, by mere millimeters, of the ball and Atletico Madrid defender Matteo Rogeri at the crucial moment of Lewandowski’s touch."
The referees' committee confirmed that the technical malfunction in the semi-automatic offside system necessitated the use of manual line drawing, which took longer than usual to ensure complete accuracy in the decision, emphasizing that the procedure was followed according to the adopted protocol to maintain the integrity of the refereeing decision despite the lengthy wait.
