Diaz sent off: referee Dingert admits mistake | OneFootball

After the controversial 1-1 draw between Bayer Leverkusen and FC Bayern, a referee’s decision is causing anger. Referee Christian Dingert himself admitted a mistake after the game

The top-of-the-table Bundesliga match between Bayer Leverkusen and FC Bayern may have ended 1-1, but the performance of referee Christian Dingert continues to be the focus of debate. The sending off of Luis Diaz in the closing stages in particular is attracting a great deal of criticism

In the 84th minute, the attacking player, who had already been cautioned, went to ground in a duel with Leverkusen goalkeeper Blaswich after pushing the ball past the keeper. Dingert judged the scene to be a foul and showed Diaz a second yellow card – the Colombian was sent off early

After the game, the referee was self-critical, admitting on Sky that his decision had been too harsh: „During the game, I saw the incident as a foul. I saw that. When I look at the replay now, it’s clear that it wasn’t a penalty. But the yellow card was very harsh. I wouldn’t give it now,“ he said

Hoeneß and Kompany sharply critical

The scene had already provoked strong reactions from FC Bayern immediately after the final whistle. Honorary President Uli Hoeneß had particularly strong words for therefereeing team’s performance: „That is the worst performance by a refereeing team that I have ever seen in a Bundesliga match.“

Bayern coach Vincent Kompany was also unhappy with several of the referee’s decisions after the match. Although the Belgian initially praised his team’s mentality, he also criticized the sending-off against Diaz

„I’m incredibly proud of the team’s mentality today. A lot happened, there were phases about which you can have different opinions and which influenced the game. We got a red card for Jackson out of the blue. There’s no discussion about that. But you can argue about Lucho’s yellow card. I can’t understand that.“

Other controversial scenes in the game

In addition to the yellow card against Diaz, two disallowed FC Bayern goals also caused discussion. Both Jonathan Tah and Harry Kane received the ball on the arm immediately before scoring, which is why Dingert revoked both goals after a VAR review

photo: IMAGO

The dismissal of Nicolas Jackson in the 41st minute remained undisputed, however, as the attacker was clearly too late against Terrier and hit his opponent on the ankle

In sporting terms, the two teams ended up drawing 1-1. Aleix Garcia had given Leverkusen an early lead before Luis Diaz equalized for FC Bayern in the 69th minute.