During the game between St.Gallen and Sion on Tuesday, there was a heated scene in the St.Gallen penalty area. The VAR intervenes, but referee Lukas Fähndrich is unable to change his mind on the screen. The decision causes a lot of controversy in the blue Sport studio.
Sion lose 3-1 at St.Gallen after leading 1-0 and once again leave the pitch as losers after five Super League games without defeat. From Valais' point of view, however, there is a bitter aftertaste.
The reason: With the score at 1-0 to the visitors, a heated scene occurred in the St.Gallen penalty area, which did not result in a penalty for Sion, even after a VAR review. Although the images clearly show St.Gallen's Behar Neziri pulling on his opponent's shirt, referee Lukas Fähndrich decides that no foul was committed after assessing the video.
As referee expert Grossen from St.Gallen has learned, this is because Fähndrich believes that Sion's Nivokazi was already off balance before the action. In addition, the Valais player also had his elbow in the neck of a St.Gallen player and thus also committed a foul, he explained in the blue Sport studio.
Nevertheless, Grossen is annoyed by the decision: "You can see a clear jersey tug. It's like a speed trap with VAR these days. And if you pluck like that, then it's simply a penalty."
Mehmedi: "That has to be a penalty!"
The blue Sport experts Georges Bregy and Admir Mehmedi agree with the referee expert. "That has to be a penalty", Mehmedi is furious, while Bregy is equally firm: "It's quite clear to me that he's off balance because of the shirt tug. Before he jumps off, the St.Gallen player is already tugging at his shirt."
After the game, Sion's Lavanchy is also frustrated. Asked about the scene, the 32-year-old defender said in an interview on blue Sport: "When I say something, I say something bad and the league comes and that's not good for me. With this penalty, maybe the game will develop a little differently."
