Two days after the Standard-Saint-Truiden match, the refereeing commission recognized that the referee had made an error in canceling Adriano Bertaccini’s goal. Following this statement, the Trudonnaires announced the filing of an official complaint with the Belgian Football Federation.
According to the refereeing commission, Mr. Van Damme should have consulted the VAR before canceling Bertaccini’s goal for offside. In its report, the refereeing department explains that “the goalkeeper sees the ball coming and deliberately tries to control it”. He added: “His attempt should be considered ‘controlled’, with the ball coming at a moderate speed and giving the player time to prepare for his movement. The fact that he failed to catch the ball does not mean that he was not in control of his movements. Furthermore, no Sint-Truiden player is putting pressure on the goalkeeper at that moment. This pressure occurs in the second phase of the action. We are awaiting an ‘on-field review’ for the offside situation, as it is a matter of interpretation and therefore the goal should have been awarded. »
David Meekers, president of Sint-Truiden, expressed the club’s incomprehension and disappointment: “The regulations are very clear, this goal should never have been canceled. » In response, the Trudonnaires filed a formal complaint with the Belgian Football Federation, demanding rigorous application of the rules. “We, Haspengouwers (residents of the Haspengouw region, editor’s note), are workers and we do not complain easily,” continued Meekers in a press release, repeating the words of former coach Raymond Goethals: “Nie zievere , speile” (Let’s stop talking, let’s play). “But if our land is attacked, we will defend it. We count on mutual respect for arbitration and that from now on the rules are also applied correctly. »
Despite the complaint filed by Sint-Truiden, hopes of obtaining a concrete result are slim. Since last year, the Pro League has introduced a rule preventing a match from being replayed for a refereeing error, after several similar requests from clubs like Genk and Seraing.
Belgium
