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Marcus Rashford had never previously taken a penalty in a competitive game for Manchester United[/caption]
The decision to award Manchester United a penalty in the 94th minute of their win over Paris St-Germain in the Champions League was a “disgrace”, says the French club’s forward Neymar.
The 27-year-old raged about the call, made after using VAR, on social media as United reached the quarter-finals. Marcus Rashford’s goal earned a 3-1 win and United went through on away goals after the tie ended 3-3 on aggregate. But Brazilian striker Neymar said the penalty “doesn’t exist”. He added: “It’s a disgrace. Four guys who know nothing about football watch a slow-motion replay in front of the television. “What can [Kimpembe] do with his hand while his back is turned?” asked the former Barcelona player, who missed both legs through injury. The penalty was awarded after referee Damir Skomina had initially awarded a corner after Diogo Dalot’s shot struck Presnel Kimpembe and went over the crossbar. Skomina received a signal to check the incident again for a possible handball in the box and after watching a pitchside monitor, changed his decision. Romelu Lukaku’s strike after two minutes gave Manchester United an early lead but the French champions restored their two-goal advantage in the tie when Kylian Mbappe fed a pass to the unmarked Juan Bernat, who slotted home at the back post. But Belgium striker Lukaku pounced on goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon’s error when he spilled Rashford’s long-range strike to put United 2-1 ahead on the night and 3-2 down on aggregate and Rashford completed the victory deep into injury time. PSG manager Thomas Tuchel said the penalty should not have been given because Dalot’s shot was not on target. “From my point of view I watched Dalot take the shot. I saw the ball flying straight from his foot and for me it was clear it was going way over the bar,” said Tuchel. “There are many things to discuss before taking the decision and I think it’s a 50-50 decision. What makes it super hard is I had the clear feeling the shot was not on target, and to get rewarded with a penalty, there is no logic.”