Spanish Referees Committee Says VAR Missed Foul on Kounde in Barcelona Loss
JAKARTA - The Spanish Referee Committee (CTA) released the results on Tuesday, February 24, 2026, local time, that Girona's winning goal against Barcelona on February 17, 2026 should have been annulled.
Fran Beltran scored in the 86th minute to secure a surprise 2-1 win for Girona at Montilivi, but Barcelona felt the goal should have been disallowed for a foul on Jules Kounde in the build-up.
Manchester City loanee Claudio Echeverri stamped on the Frenchman's foot in the build-up to Beltran's goal.
The CTA and the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) then confirmed that VAR should have intervened.
"In an individual duel outside the penalty area, a Girona attacker stepped on the foot of a Barcelona defender with his shoe just before passing the ball to his teammate."
"VAR reviewed all phases of the attack, considered the incident as something open to interpretation by the referee, upheld the decision on the pitch and confirmed the goal," said RFEF and CTA.
Law 12 on Offenses and Improper Behavior explains that a reckless tackle is an offense and a yellow card. The ball grab does not exempt the player from committing an offense.
If a player steps on an opponent with excessive force, it must be sanctioned. According to the CTA and RFEF, the Girona attacker removed the defender from the defensive action. The offense must be punished with a yellow card.
"VAR must intervene because this involves a clear and obvious error. VAR must advise the referee to change the decision," read the CTA and RFEF statement.
Barcelona voiced their support for clarification surrounding the VAR decision in social media.
"Admitting mistakes is a big step. Avoiding them is the next step," wrote Blaugrana.
The disputed decision came just days after Barcelona sent a letter to the RFEF and CTA complaining of various referee and VAR inconsistencies after Pau Cubarsi's goal was ruled offside - after a seven-minute review - in the 0-4 defeat in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final against Atletico Madrid.
Allowing Beltran's goal to stand only increased the Catalan club's anger even though Hansi Flick said he did not want to use it as an excuse because his team also performed poorly like the referees.
Meanwhile, Raphinha regretted that Barcelona played with a different set of rules than other teams after their defeat to Girona saw them surrender the LaLiga summit to Real Madrid.
However, they returned to the top last weekend after beating Levante 3-0 at Camp Nou on February 22, 2026, after Real Madrid's eight-match winning streak in the league ended with a 1-2 defeat at Osasuna's home on the same day.
With 13 games remaining, Barcelona have 61 points, one more than Real Madrid. The two teams will meet in an El Clasico that could decide the title at Camp Nou in early May 2026.