Thomas Tuchel could not believe Matthijs de Ligt’s goal was ruled out (Image: Getty)
Thomas Tuchel was left seething over a “disastrous decision” that denied Matthijs de Ligt a late equaliser as Bayern Munich’s Champions League dreams were dashed by a 4-3 aggregate defeat to Real Madrid and said he felt “betrayed”.
The semi-final clash was delicately balanced following a 2-2 stalemate in Germany, but Alphonso Davies’ goal at the Bernabeu put Bayern on the brink of halting Madrid’s impressive 13-month unbeaten home streak.
With just minutes remaining, Joselu cancelled out Bayern’s lead after capitalising on a Manuel Neuer error, and then dramatically netted the winner, initially disallowed for offside but overturned by VAR, confirming both Joselu and Antonio Rudiger were onside.
In a heart-stopping moment during the 13th minute of added time, referee Szymon Marciniak prematurely ended a Bayern attack with his whistle for an offside, moments before De Ligt struck what could have been a game-changing goal. Despite Bayern’s protests, the decision stood, leaving them and England skipper Harry Kane without silverware this season.
Tuchel revealed his disappointment to TNT Sports stating, “We were almost through, almost there and had a very unusual mistake by our very best player for the equaliser.
“Then we conceded in a very narrow decision, the second one in stoppage time. Then we scored one and they have a disastrous decision from the linesman and from the referee.
“So, it feels almost like a betrayal in the end because of that decision. It was a huge fight, we left everything on the pitch and we were almost there. Now we have to say congratulations to Real Madrid.
“The linesman said sorry, but that does not help. At that kind of level, to raise the flag in a decision like this, a close decision, in the last minute and the referee as well.”
Watch all the Premier League and Champions League drama unfold on TNT Sports
Thomas Tuchel was furious with the officials at the Bernabeu (Image: Getty)
The German expressed even more discontent with the referee’s decision: “The referee does not have to whistle. He sees that we win the second ball, he sees that we get a shot away and to whistle is a very, very bad decision.
“And it is against the rules and it is a bad decision from both of them. It is a disaster. Tough to swallow, but that is the way it is.”
However, it wasn’t the best night for Harry Kane whose longing for silverware continues due to this loss, compounded by Tuchel’s surprising decision to substitute the ex-Tottenham striker in the 85th minute while Bayern led 1-0.
While Tuchel didn’t comment specifically on Kane’s substitution, he did mention: “Part of the story is we start with a front four and all four players need to go out because of injuries and cramps.” He added: “It is a bit too much at that level.”
Source: https://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/1897228/Thomas-Tuchel-Harry-Kane-Bayern-Munich-Real-Madrid