FIFA Referee Goretti Nain clarifies on City’s controversial goal against Real

FIFA certified Referee Goretti Nain Diangha Maria says Kevin De Bryune’s equalizer against Real Madrid in Tuesday’s 2022/23 UEFA Champions League semi-final was a genuine goal, though it has divided public opinion in the past 12 hours.

Real coach Carlo Ancelotti, was booked for his remonstration in an attempt to convince Portuguese Referee Artur Soares Dias, and his team chalk off the goal, but Goretti, nominee for the 2021 Female Referee of the year has other ideas.

According to the Cameroon-based FIFA certified Referee, the point of reference is not whether the ball went over the line or not, because the guidelines on the use of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) condemns the goal to stand if the Referees were undicided about the position of the ball when Portuguese midfielder Bernardo Silva kept it alive before De Bryune was picked.

“The IFAB rule is very clear in situations like this. I will not like to debate on whether the ball crossed the line or not. I have seen varied images and it’s inconclusive for someone who wasn’t in the VAR room. However, the fact that Real Madrid recovered possession before surrendering it in the build up to the goal and it’s not one of the prescribed scenario for VAR intervention settles it all per IFAB law 10,” Goretti, FIFA Referee since 2018 told kick442.com in an exclusive conversation.