CTA confirms Osasuna handball at Mestalla should have been a penalty | OneFootball

Spain’s refereeing committee has confirmed that Jorge Herrando’s handball at Mestalla should have resulted in a Valencia penalty. The Comité Técnico de Árbitros said in a video reviewing the latest round in Primera and Segunda División that the on-field referee and VAR made a clear and obvious error.

Herrando went to ground and blocked the ball with an arm position that the body found punishable. The action resembled a goalkeeper’s stop rather than a legitimate defensive block and was not covered by the support-on-the-ground exception.

The committee explained that hands used for support are still penalised if the arm opens out, occupies an unnatural space or makes an extra movement to play or intercept the ball. In this case, it judged the arm to be extended, away from the body and intercepting the ball, so a penalty should have been given.

Its assessment underlines that such incidents must be sanctioned, given the arm was excessively open and extended.

The episode sparked strong criticism on social media, with many seeing a save rather than a legal block. The committee’s review publicly corrects the match officials.

Source: Superdeporte