The VAR official involved in the decision to award Paris St Germain a controversial last-gasp penalty to salvage a Champions League draw against Newcastle has been stood down from duty on Wednesday night.
Thomas Kwiatkowski will no longer be among the officials selected to oversee the Real Sociedad v Red Bull Salzburg match at the Anoeta Stadium.
Newcastle were within a few minutes of stoppage time of a famous victory at the Parc des Princes when a questionable handball decision against Tino Livramento handed Kylian Mbappe the chance to snatch a point, and it was one he took with some aplomb.
Asked if he felt a sense of injustice, Magpies boss Eddie Howe replied: "Yes, I do. It wasn't the right decision in my opinion.
"There are so many things to take into account at that moment, the speed first. It was a ricochet that when it is slowed down, looks completely different to the live event.
"The ball hits his chest first, comes up and hits his hand. But his hand is not in an unnatural position, they (his hands) are down by his side, but he is in a running motion.
"I feel it is a poor decision and it's hugely frustrating for us as you know how little time there is left in the game. There is nothing we can do about it now."
Howe, who said in a television interview after the 1-1 draw that the official had been placed under "extreme" pressure by the PSG players, labelled a decision which cost his side two precious points "poor" in his post-match press conference.
The pivotal moment arrived in the fifth minute of stoppage time when Ousmane Dembele attempted to deliver the ball across the Newcastle penalty area and saw it hit Livramento’s side and rear up on to the underside of his arm.
Szymon Marciniak, who had earlier seen decisions not to award spot-kicks for an Anthony Gordon challenge on Achraf Hakimi and a shout for handball against teenager midfielder Lewis Miley upheld, was advised to review the incident and this time decided to award the penalty.
The Magpies, who had taken a 24th-minute lead through Alexander Isak, defended it for grim life until the last-gasp controversy, although they needed Pope to be at his brilliant best on several occasions.
"We are desperate to stay in the competition, and to show a better version of ourselves"
They now need to beat AC Milan at home on 13 December and hope PSG do not win away to Borussia Dortmund to progress.
Asked if that was something to cling on to, Howe said: "Yes, I think that’s absolutely right. In the next couple of days, that will become more relevant in our thoughts, I think.
"When the draw came out, it was the 'group of death' and I don’t think many people gave us a chance of qualifying from it and sitting here now, I’m a little bit frustrated that it’s not in our hands because when I look back at the two Dortmund games, I felt we could have done better in those matches.
"I don’t think it’s the time for that, I think it’s probably a time to be positive and to say that if we can beat Milan, then good things can happen from it.
"I think we have to look that we're still in the competition. The first thing to do is look at that because it could have been different tonight, so that game now is going to take on huge significance for lots of different reasons.
"I've loved every second of it and I'm desperate to stay in it. We have been thrown in at the deep end against high-class opposition, some great stadiums and brilliant atmospheres and we are desperate to stay in the competition, and to show a better version of ourselves. We’d love the opportunity to do it.
"We’re back at home and we’re excited about the game when it comes around, so they’re huge positives for us. That’s why I don’t think we should lose sight of that despite the disappointing ending.
"We've shown that despite the huge number of players – quality players – not being here, the group has stepped up and given more. We’ve shown that the spirit and togetherness and the willingness to fight for each other is as good as I’ve ever seen it at any football club since I’ve been involved in the game, and we’re very proud to represent Newcastle, as I’ve said many times before, but especially on the European stage."
For PSG boss Luis Enrique, there was a mixture of relief and frustration on a night when his side created a host of chances but were unable to take any of them until Mbappe’s late intervention.
Enrique said: "Without a doubt, we played a very great game. We deserved to win. We played better than Newcastle. The result does not reflect what happened on the pitch.
"It’s not basketball. We are one of the teams in Europe that scores the most. Sometimes the ball doesn’t want to go in.
"Sometimes the game looked like table tennis. I couldn’t believe we couldn’t score, but we carried on despite the frustration."
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