Former FIFA Referee Insists Key Decision Was Wrong in Galatasaray vs Liverpool Match

Former FIFA referee Keith Hackett has suggested that officials made a major mistake during the Champions League clash between Galatasaray S.K. and Liverpool F.C. on Tuesday night.

Galatasaray defeated Arne Slot’s side 1–0 during the league phase of the competition at RAMS Park. Liverpool had the opportunity to respond when they were drawn against the Turkish side again in the Round of 16.

However, the first leg followed a similar pattern, with Galatasaray once again claiming a 1–0 victory. Mario Lemina’s early strike in the seventh minute proved decisive, giving the Turkish club another win over the reigning Premier League champions.

Both teams saw goals ruled out during the match. Galatasaray believed they had doubled their lead midway through the second half when Victor Osimhen capitalised on a mistake by Ibrahima Konaté, but the effort was disallowed for offside.

Liverpool later thought they had equalised with 13 minutes remaining when Konaté turned the ball into the net. However, the goal was ruled out after officials judged that the French defender had handled the ball.

Hackett, who served as a FIFA referee for a decade and also officiated in the Premier League, believes the decision to disallow the goal was incorrect. Speaking to Football Insider, he argued that the call was extremely harsh.

According to Hackett, although the ball may have made contact with Konaté’s arm, there was no sign of deliberate handball and the defender did not appear to make his body unnaturally bigger. He also pointed out that the ball did not go directly into the net from Konaté’s arm, either intentionally or accidentally.

In a video shared on Football Insider’s X account, Hackett added that Liverpool “have every right to feel aggrieved” about the decision.

However, former Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg disagrees with that view. Clattenburg, who officiated in England’s top flight between 2004 and 2017, insists the officials applied the rules correctly.

Speaking to Rousing the Kop, he explained that while Konaté’s contact with the ball was accidental, the laws of the game require the goal to be disallowed if a player scores after the ball touches their arm without another teammate touching it first.

Liverpool and Galatasaray will meet again for the second leg at Anfield on March 18, with the tie still finely balanced and both teams confident about their chances of reaching the quarter-finals.