Atlético de Madrid earns draw thanks to controversial penalty
Atlético de Madrid managed to draw 1-1 against Alavés thanks to a controversial penalty for handball by Abqar, Alavés defender, after a shot by Sorloth. Although the play was highly debated by the Vitorians, as the defender was in the air in an unnatural position, the referee of the match, García Verdura, had no doubts and whistled the penalty.
Iturralde González, analyst for SER and AS, explained that the play falls within the punishable ones according to the instructions that referees have when whistling a penalty.
The international referee also pointed out that the defender jumped in the dispute with an opponent, with the hand occupying a space and being very separate from the body, which following the guidelines given to referees, leaves them no choice but to whistle a penalty.
However, he also pointed out the detail that if he had seen a foul by the forward in the dispute, he could have saved Alavés. Alavés is not having luck with this type of play, as a very similar one was signaled with the maximum penalty against Villarreal.
