Referees Committee believes VAR made an error leading to Girona winner vs Barcelona

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·17 de febrero de 2026

Referees Committee believes VAR made an error leading to Girona winner vs Barcelona

Hours have passed since Barcelona’s 2-1 defeat in Girona, yet discussion continues to focus on the incident that may have shaped the match at Estadi Montilivi.

The controversy centres on the stamp by Claudio Echeverri on Barcelona’s Jules Kounde, which occurred in the build-up to Fran Beltran’s goal, which ultimately secured victory for Girona.

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Despite the Argentine’s stamp being as clear as day, referee Cesar Soto Grado did not call a foul and allowed play to go on. And, much to everyone’s surprise, the VAR also chose not to intervene even after the move had ended up leading to a goal for the hosts.

CTA opines VAR should have intervened

Now, according to Mundo Deportivo, within the Technical Committee of Referees (CTA), there is no doubt that VAR should have intervened once the goal was scored, after Cesar Soto Grado failed to sanction the infringement.

The stamp is considered clear and part of the same attacking phase that led to the goal for Girona.

In this case, David Galvez, the specialist VAR referee appointed for the match, should have alerted the match official to review the action on the monitor, as it was sufficient grounds to disallow Girona’s second goal.

🚨 𝗕𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗞𝗜𝗡𝗚: Kounde was STAMPED on his foot before the goal but VAR is NOT DOING ANYTHING!
– lunes, 16 de febrero de 2026

According to the intervention criteria applied by the Committee since the start of the season, this is not an action open to interpretation.

If the on-field referee does not see it, as occurred in this instance, he must be advised from the VAR room to review it.

The incident cannot be classified as a grey or subjective decision, dependent on the referee’s judgement on the pitch.

The Committee has been working consistently each week on these intervention guidelines, reviewing incidents and procedures to eliminate doubts, especially in cases considered as clear as this one.

This refereeing error will not feature in the “Tiempo de Revisión” programme broadcast tonight by the Committee, as the incidents are selected on Sunday. However, it may be included in next week’s edition.