Matthijs de Ligt: Linesman apologized for offside call in Champions League semi — ‘Big mistake, big disgrace’

An epic finish to the UEFA Champions League semifinal between Real Madrid and Bayern Munich could’ve been even more legendary were it not for an apparent mistake from the officials on Wednesday in Spain.

Real Madrid struck twice through Joselu to take a 2-1 second leg advantage and 4-3 aggregate lead over Bayern, but Matthis de Ligt seemed to have poked Bayern level in the 12th minute of stoppage time.

[ MORE: Real Madrid 2-1 (4-3 agg) Bayern Munich recap, highlights ]

But no! The assistant referee had raised his flag for offside in the build-up and the referee blew the whistle before De Ligt released his shot. The whistle meant that VAR had no power to review the play for offside, and replays showed a decision would’ve been razor-thin.

An apology came, but it did not go over well with De Ligt and his teammates. And how could it? De Ligt could’ve had an all-time positive moment in Bayern history, and it didn’t even merit a review.

Matthijs de Ligt reaction to ending of Champions League semifinal

De Ligt was asked his opinion on the moment on beIN Sports after the game.

“If it’s offside, it’s offside, but we made rules in football and the rule says that if it’s not a clear offside, which it wasn’t, you have to keep playing,” De Ligt said. “If you go in the last minute and you whistle like this, I think this is a big mistake and a big disgrace. If it’s offside or not, I don’t know, you can check it but if you don’t check it how can you see it. [On] the second goal of Joselu, [Antonio] Rudiger is almost also offside. If he whistles there, nothing, but now it’s a difference.”

“The linesman told me I’m sorry I made a mistake. I get nothing for that. In the end, I’m not the type of person who wants to blame losing or winning on the referee so Madrid deserves to win because they win 2-1 but if it’s a rule, it’s a rule, and it’s the only thing I can say about it.”

Matthijs de Ligt

And he’s branding the season a lost one.

We are Bayern Munich and we haven’t won anything. Today was the last chance to make a really good season and we lost. I’m proud of the fight we showed today because it’s not easy to play here but in the end we won nothing so it’s not really Bayern Munich. I’m really disappointed with this season so hopefully next season we can win.

"It's a big, big mistake!"@mdeligt_04 was very frustrated with that late-offside decision. @adriandelmonte with the questions. #beINUCL #UCL #RealMadridBayern pic.twitter.com/3g6FjZaZYf

— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS_EN) May 8, 2024