Borussia Dortmund and England star Jadon Sancho was left fuming at the decision to disallow a Jude Bellingham goal in the Champions League clash at Manchester City, but Pep Guardiola called the referee "brilliant".
England youngster Bellingham thought he'd equalised for Dortmund in the first half when he nicked the ball away from City goalkeeper Ederson before tapping it into the net, only to see his effort ruled out for a high foot by Romanian referee Ovidiu Hategan.
Sancho, who missed the game through injury, was left less than impressed as he watched on, tweeting: "This ref needs checking" shortly after Bellingham's goal was ruled out.
Guardiola was more than happy with what he saw though.
"The referees were brilliant," he said after the match.
"The game was not a problem so it's not a penalty after the VAR, people told me it was not a penalty.
"And after the Bellingham action, his leg is higher than expected so the linesman was perfect.
"It was not an influence like it was in the past."
The City manager was also left baffled when one of the assistant referees appeared to ask Dortmund forward Erling Haaland - who remains linked with City as well as several other top sides for his autograph after the match.
The official approached Haaland in the tunnel at the Etihad Stadium, with the Norwegian forward happy to comply with the request.
"They told me – I didn’t see it," said Guardiola.
"Maybe he’s a fan of Haaland so why not?
"Maybe it was for his son and daughter. I’ve never seen it before but they did a good job."
