The Atlético de Madrid-Real Madrid second leg of the Champions League round of 16 at the Metropolitano was expected to be intense and hard-fought, and the reality exceeded all expectations. The Rojiblancos drew level in the tie after just 30 seconds, but neither side was able to tip the balance in regulation time or in extra time. It all came down to the penalty shootout, which went the way of the Whites.
As expected, a match of this magnitude has left many images, phrases and controversies beyond the strictly footballing. The game is over, but the controversies remain. Starting with what happened on the pitch with the refereeing decisions of Szymon Marciniak.
The controversial penalties
The match, as we said, began with Atlético de Madrid’s goal that equalized the aggregate score of the tie. From then on, Real Madrid took possession of the ball, although this was rather sterile except for some individual play by Vinicius on the left side of the Madrid attack.
In one of them, Vinicius went down the left wing, fell to the ground and tried to cross the ball into the area, but the ball touched the hand of Giuliano Simeone. Real Madrid claimed a penalty, but referee Szymon Marciniak pointed to his earpiece and confirmed that he had been told by VAR that it was not a punishable action. In the second half, Real Madrid had a penalty that the Brazilian sent over the bar.
In the penalty shoot-out, VAR intervened again with a highly questionable decision. When the Metropolitano had already celebrated Julián Alvarez‘s goal from eleven meters out, VAR disallowed the Argentine’s goal because he slipped and touched the ball twice.
According to rule 14, which refers to penalty kicks, a player may not touch the ball a second time after coming into contact with it. Julián had scored, but it was all annulled after the ball, after being hit with his right foot, supposedly touched his left foot.
Vinicius and his provocations
Vinicius was one of the protagonists of the derby due to his intensity on the wing, his missed penalty and, once again, his provocations to the Metropolitano stands. The Brazilian was substituted in the 115th minute and, while the Metropolitano chanted “Vinicius, beach ball”, he addressed the stands making the gesture with his hands that they have 15 Champions Leagues and Atlético de Madrid, zero.
Once the match was over, the Brazilian made another gesture to the stands: he left his coat on the pitch and pointed to the crest, referring to the Metropolitano as Real territory. Once in the changing rooms, the Brazilian once again used his social networks to continue his banter. The player posted a provocative message on Instagram as soon as the game ended: “Madremiaaaa!!! MADRID HAS ONLY ONE!!!! But we all know that. Let’s improve and see you next time!!!” said the Brazilian.
Simeone explodes at press conference… and Courtois and Ceballos respond to him
After the end of the match, it was also time to talk to the media, with mixed messages. At Simeone’s press conference, there was a tense moment when he faced the press asking about Julián Álvarez’s penalty kick. “What did you see? Let those who think that Julián touched it twice raise their hands.”
The reaction went viral on social media, where Ceballos took the opportunity to respond. A Madrid fan account posted Simeone’s moment with the comment “cinema”. Ceballos shared it and made the hand-raising gesture.
— Daniel Ceballos (@DaniCeballos46) March 12, 2025
Former Atleti player Courtois also addressed the rojiblanco coach and the Colchoneros fans in general. “UEFA sees it clearly (Julián Alvarez’s double touch on the penalty). I’m fed up with this victimhood, of always crying about things like this. Referees don’t want to benefit one team in Spain or in Europe. In the end… they saw it clearly and that’s why they disallowed it. They’re human and they can make mistakes, but this time, with the technology, they saw it clearly. In the VOR room they have many cameras, many images. I don’t know… If you’re winning 1-0 from the first minute and you don’t look for a second goal… that’s where the failure of their game lies,” were his words in the mixed zone.