The International Football Association Board (IFAB) officially amended the rule that disallowed Julián Alvarez’s penalty in the Champions League round of 16 against Real Madrid.
IFAB declared that if a penalty taker accidentally makes contact with the ball with both feet, a successful penalty kick must now be retaken. The effort will no longer count as a miss.
The ruling comes after controversy surrounded Real Madrid’s penalty shootout victory against Atlético Madrid. Alvarez, who originally put his penalty kick past Thibaut Courtois at the Metropolitano, saw his effort wiped away for an accidental double touch. Los Colchoneros went on to lose the shootout 4–2 and crashed out of the Champions League.
The decision by referee Szymon Marciniak came under fire from Atlético Madrid. UEFA heard the club's complaints and reviewed the law with FIFA and the IFAB, leading to the new rule change moving forward.
“[When] the penalty taker accidentally kicks the ball with both feet simultaneously or the ball touches their non-kicking foot or leg immediately after the kick: If the kick is successful, it is retaken,” IFAB clarified.
“If the kick is unsuccessful, an indirect free kick is awarded (unless the referee plays advantage when it clearly benefits the defending team) or, in the case of penalties (penalty shoot-out), the kick is recorded as missed.”
Under the new rules, Alvarez would have been allowed to retake his penalty against Real Madrid. However, IFAB said it was “understandable” that Marciniak disallowed the striker’s penalty given the prior rule stated a player must not touch the ball twice when taking a penalty.
Now, players who accidentally execute a double touch will not be penalized and will just have to retake the penalty kick if it is successful. Those who deliberately touch the ball twice will still have their effort disallowed.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as UEFA Enforces New Champions League Rule Change After Real Madrid Controversy.
