Friday morning’s Europa Conference League clash between Marseille and Qarabag delivered a stunning act of sportsmanship, as a player scored a goal with his hand and sparked eight minutes of chaos on the pitch – before asking the referee to overturn his goal.
French heavyweights Olympique Marseille were leading 1-0 (and 4-1 on aggregate) half an hour into the second leg of their round of 16 fixture when Senegalese striker Ibrahima Wadji punched a ball into the goal for the Azerbaijani side.
Polish referee Bartosz Frankowski missed the handball, which came as Wadji competed with Marseille’s goalkeeper for a cross.
And the third-tier European continental tournament – unlike the Champions League and Europa League – does not employ a video assistant referee (VAR) until the final of the competition.
Marseille players were incensed, with on-loan Arsenal midfielder Matteo Guendouzi reportedly chasing his opponent around the pitch while repeatedly shouting: “You’re a cheat.”
The referee handed out a raft of yellow cards to the furious Marseille players for their complaints and tried to restore order.
But Wadji went to speak with Qarabag coach Gurban Gurbanov and conceded the offence before the player spoke to the referee who eventually overturned the ruling – a full eight minutes after the goal had been originally allowed.
Marseille were infamously eliminated in the semi-final of the European Cup in 1990 by Benfica forward Vata, who punched home a goal now known as the ‘hand of the devil’ – a reference to Diego Maradona’s famous ‘hand of God’ goal.
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<p>Morocco women’s team have joined two other African teams – Nigeria and South Africa – in the round of 16 at the ongoing 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. Morocco who suffered a massive 6-0 defeat in their opening game at their debut World Cup, bounced back to winning ways by beating […]</p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.naijanews.com/2023/08/03/womens-world-cup-morocco-join-nigeria-and-south-africa-in-round-16-germany-out/">Women’s World Cup: Morocco Join Nigeria, and South Africa In Round 16, Germany Out</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.naijanews.com">Naija News</a>.</p>
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<h2><a href="https://www.naijanews.com/2024/03/21/liverpool-real-madrid-fc-bayern-are-working-on-appointing-xabi-alonso/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bayer Leverkusen coach, Xabi Alonso</a> has reportedly informed Premier League club, Liverpool, and German Bundesliga club, Bayern Munich, that he is not planning to leave his current club ahead of next season.</h2>
<p>Xabi Alonso is currently enjoying an unprecedented run at Bayer Leverkusen where he is currently topping the German Bundesliga table with 10 points above second-placed Bayern Munich.</p>
<p>The Spanish tactician is the only manager in the top four leagues in Europe that has not suffered a defeat this season.</p>
<p>Hence, he is wanted by his two former clubs, Bayern Munich and Liverpool who are expected to lose their current coaches, Thomas Tuchel, and Jurgen Klopp, respectively, at the end of this season.</p>
<p>Transfer expert, Fabrizio Romano, has claimed that Liverpool have bowed out of the race to appoint Xabi Alonso since Thursday, March 28, and Bayern Munich are expected to bow out today, March 29.</p>
<p>The transfer expert also said Alonso is expected to remain the head coach of Bayer Leverkusen until 2025 and there will be a release clause which will permit him to join another club at the end of next season.</p>
<p><em>"Liverpool, Bayern, and Real Madrid will keep following the development of Xabi Alonso in the future months",</em> the transfer expert added.</p>
<p>Also, the honorary president of Bayern Munich, Uli Hoeness had said it is almost impossible for Xabi Alonso to leave Bayer Leverkusen at the end of this season because the Spanish tactician would want to achieve more feats at the club.</p>
<p><em>“Alonso is more inclined to stay at Bayer Leverkusen given their current successes because he would not want to leave them behind",</em> he said as quoted by Daily Mail.</p>
<p><em>“Let’s say if he had two or three more years of success, it would probably be easier to get him out of there.”</em></p>
<p><em>“I personally, and we all, extremely appreciate Xabi Alonso, but you mustn’t forget that he is now training at a club that is currently in the process of becoming German champions.”</em></p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.naijanews.com/2024/03/29/xabi-alonso-to-stay-at-bayer-leverkusen-for-one-more-season/">Xabi Alonso To Stay At Bayer Leverkusen For One More Season</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.naijanews.com">Naija News</a>.</p>
<p>"We know our defence is very strong because we have conceded only one goal. What we require is the midfield, our forward is also fantastic..."</p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.arise.tv/nigeria-vs-angola-super-eagles-will-reach-afcon-semi-finals-midfield-my-only-fear-says-ganduje/"> Nigeria Vs Angola: Super Eagles Will Reach AFCON Semi-Finals, Midfield My Only Fear, Says Ganduje </a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.arise.tv">Arise News</a>.</p>
