Injured PSG striker Neymar lashed out at the video assistant referee (VAR) system, calling the late penalty decision that led to their elimination from the Champions League a “disgrace”.
The French champions won 2-0 away at Manchester United in the first leg and although they were 2-1 down on the night, they were going through on aggregate until the stoppage-time penalty decision gave United a shock 3-1 win.
The spot-kick, awarded for handball against Presnel Kimpembe after the referee consulted the VAR, put the English club through on away goals.
The decision infuriated Neymar, who watched the match from the stands.
“This is a disgrace!! And they put four guys there who don’t understand football to look at a slow-motion replay ... It’s just not possible!!!(sic).”
“How is a guy going to hold his hand behind his back,” he wrote in Portuguese on Instagram, before finishing with a vloekwoord
commonly used in Brazil.
PSG was not the only club that crashed out of the Champions League after a VAR decision.
As Roma president James Pallotta said his team had been “screwed again” after their Champions League elimination at the hands of Porto when two VAR decisions went against the Serie A side in the final minutes.
REPLAY: Match referee Damir Skomina. PHOTO: JOHN WALTON/PA WIRE
Porto were awarded a penalty late in extra time following a VAR review which Alex Telles converted to give them a 3-1 win on the night in the round of 16, second leg tie and send them through 4-3 on aggregate.
Shortly afterwards, Roma forward Patrik Schick went down under a challenge from Moussa Marega in the Porto area and the referee, who consulted the video assistant but did not review the incident himself, waved play on.
“Last year we asked for VAR in the Champions League because we got screwed in the semifinal and tonight, they’ve got VAR and we still get robbed,” Pallotta posted on the club’s official Twitter feed.