We should have had a clear penalty, Xavi complained. I don’t know what more we have to do, Barcelona coach doesn’t understand

Barcelona draw 2-2 with Manchester United in the first leg of the 1/16 Europa League final. However, Blaugranas coach Xavi complained at the press conference about a moment at the end of the match when, in his opinion, Barcelona should have taken a penalty.

The duel between Barcelona and Manchester United was, according to many, at the level of the Champions League. While the first half didn’t really confirm this, the second half offered decent football.

Marcos Alonso opened the scoring just after half-time, only minutes after that Marcus Rashford equalised, scoring his 14th goal in the last 16 games.

It was Rashford who scored the next goal when his centre was knocked into the net by Jules Koundé. United then held the lead, but couldn’t hold it the whole time.

In the 76th minute, Raphinha, who also assisted the first goal, equalised at 2-2, playing in a very cool manner. So when he went off the field in the 83rd minute, he kicked the bench in anger.

In the last few minutes, there was a hitch in the visitors’ whitewash. Sergi Roberto tried to head the ball back into the fire but only hit Fred’s arm.

All Barcelona players immediately started to claim the arm, but the main referee Maurizio Mariani did not award the penalty after consulting VAR.

Fred’s arm? It’s a clear penalty. They didn’t give us a penalty in the Champions League in Milan, I don’t know what more we have to do. And on top of that they tell us they checked it on VAR, it’s unbelievable, unbelievable,” Xavi complained.

However, everyone disagrees with the view that it was a clear hand. “The ball brushes the hand of a defender who is very close to it and the ball hardly changes its trajectory. In my opinion, it is not a penalty,” Spanish refereeing expert Pavel Fernández told MARCA radio.

Source: Twitter, UEFA, MARCA