Was Arsenal right to be outraged by refereeing after Atletico draw in 2026?

Arsenal's overturned penalty against Atletico in the 2026 Champions League sparked outrage from Mikel Arteta.

The Match Takes Center Stage Following the thrilling Champions League tie between Paris St-Germain and Bayern Munich, the officials took center stage in the second semi-final 24 hours later. Arsenal returned to Emirates Stadium next week with a creditable 1-1 draw from their first leg at Atletico Madrid, but that does not tell even half the story. The match was a tale of three penalties, with one scored by Arsenal, one by Atletico Madrid, and one most controversially awarded to but then taken away from the Gunners. ## Incident with the Penalties Viktor Gyokeres put the Premier League side in front before halftime, scoring from the spot after being bundled over in the box. Julian Alvarez then equalized with a penalty after a debatable handball decision given against Ben White - more on that later. But the big talking point was the final penalty incident, with referee Danny Makkelie initially pointing to the spot when David Hancko caught Eberechi Eze. Then the video assistant referee (VAR) sent Makkelie to the monitor, and the decision was overturned, leaving Mikel Arteta 'incredibly fuming'. ## Manager's Reaction Mikel Arteta expressed his frustration, saying, 'There is no clear and obvious error. And this changes the course of the game. And at this level, I'm sorry but this cannot happen.' When asked if he had been given an explanation for the decision, he added, 'No. A very clear explanation of the decision and what happens for a period of time, a referee has to watch it 13 times, what's more clear than that? It's impossible and we are all fuming about it.' ## Similar Circumstances in the Past Arsenal will rue their overturned penalty against Atletico, as only last month, a different decision in very similar circumstances was seen in their match against Bayer Leverkusen. In that game, the Gunners were awarded a late penalty when Noni Madueke went down in the area under a challenge from Malik Tillman. Contact on the England international was slight, with Tillman landing on the forward's boot as he fell to the ground. ## The Definition of Handball A senior figure in Uefa's refereeing body explained that while they would prefer no penalty was awarded on the field, the contact left the VAR with nowhere to go. The Premier League follows the same logic in these situations. The decision might seem soft, but there's no reason to go against the referee's decision. If you are saying that the Madueke decision should stay as a penalty kick, then the same should apply to Eze. ## Pundit's Reaction Former Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard said referee Makkelie was 'influenced' by the similar choice to award PSG a penalty against Bayern Munich. He told TNT Sports, 'I think the referees have been influenced by the decision that happened [in Paris]. They have seen the handball committed by Alphonso Davies that led to a penalty and thought we need to follow suit and give this one from Ben White - even if he tries to move his arm out of the way.'