A prominent Saudi refereeing expert has ignited controversy by stating that Al-Hilal were wrongly denied a clear penalty during their recent Saudi Pro League match against Al-Taawoun.
The incident in question occurred during the first half of the match, which ended in a 1-1 draw. Al-Hilal’s Serbian striker, Aleksandar Mitrović, was involved in a challenge inside the penalty area by an Al-Taawoun defender. Match referee Shukri Al-Hanfosh did not award a spot-kick and allowed play to continue.
In a detailed analysis, the expert revealed that the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system did review the potential foul on Mitrović. However, the VAR official, Khalid Al-Turais, advised the on-field referee that there was no clear error, leading to the decision to play on.
The expert firmly contradicted this assessment, asserting that the contact on Mitrović constituted a definite penalty. He emphasized that the defender made no contact with the ball and instead made clear contact with the Al-Hilal forward’s foot, which should have resulted in a penalty kick being awarded.
This missed call has sparked significant debate within Saudi football circles, raising fresh questions about the consistency and application of VAR in the league’s crucial matches.
