César Soto Grado and his VAR assistants continue to make headlines in Spain. Hours after the Valencia vs. Real Madrid match, where Kylian Mbappé had a magnificent goal denied, new images of the offside decision have surfaced, sparking outrage.
The first Liga match of 2025 has been making waves since Friday. During Real Madrid's match against Valencia at the Mestalla, referee César Soto Grado's performance has been widely criticized. While the focus has been on Vinicius Junior's red card for responding to the Valencia goalkeeper's provocation, attention has shifted to Kylian Mbappé in recent hours.
Mbappé scored a stunning goal against Valencia, but it was disallowed for offside. However, new images reveal that Mbappé was actually even with the Valencia defender's foot when Jude Bellingham made the pass.
Contrary to the VAR officials' claims, the images clearly show that Mbappé was not offside. For unclear reasons, VAR official Muñiz Ruiz selected an image from two seconds after Bellingham's pass, which appeared to show Mbappé in an offside position.
This new scandal has sparked outrage, with many believing that Mbappé was robbed of a legitimate goal. The denied goal didn't affect the final result (Real Madrid won 2-1), but the incident has made headlines.
Given the importance of goals in individual title races, Mbappé can't help but feel frustrated by these revelations about arbitration mistakes in Spain. If Mbappé's goal had been validated, it could have potentially prevented Vinicius Junior's red card and the intense finale that followed.
Spanish arbitration needs a complete overhaul.