VAR Overturns Atletico Madrid Goal Against Manchester United

Manchester United avoided conceding a second goal against Atletico Madrid after VAR overturned a first-half strike for a handball in the build-up to Johnny Cardoso's finish. The decision came after Marcos Llorente appeared to handle the ball during a challenge with Ayden Heaven before the goal was scored.

The incident occurred shortly before halftime, when Swedish referee Glenn Nyberg was asked to review his original decision at the pitch-side monitor. According to the match coverage, the referee changed the call and disallowed Atletico Madrid's goal.

Former Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg supported the decision while speaking on Amazon Prime, explaining that the handball decision depended on whether Llorente gained an advantage from the contact.

"There's no doubt the ball does touch his hand, the action has to be deliberate because he doesn't score from that action, it's to a teammate. It has to be a deliberate handball. If it's an accidental handball, the play continues, and the goal should stand. The referee has to decide is it deliberate or not?" said Mark Clattenburg, former Premier League referee.

Clattenburg added that the VAR review focused on whether Llorente's action affected the play. He said the referee and VAR considered whether the player gained an advantage by blocking a pass from the Manchester United defender.

"What the VAR have done and the referee has had a discussion over the summer, does he gain an advantage from it? He does because it blocks a pass for the Manchester United defender. The action, he does make a movement of his arm to the ball, so I wouldn't be surprised if this is disallowed for handball." said Mark Clattenburg, former Premier League referee.

Atletico Madrid had already taken the lead early in the match after Alex Baena created the opening goal. According to the report, Baena's run into the penalty area allowed Pablo Barrios to score with a low shot from the far post area.

Former Manchester United player Ashley Young assessed the overturned goal during the halftime discussion. He said the decision prevented United from facing a larger deficit before the break.

"That would have been a sucker punch for Manchester United. It could have gone either way, to be honest they get away with one. You go in one-nil down, it's better than going in two-nil down. United were partly lucky here but it's not a goal." said Ashley Young, former Manchester United player.

Young also highlighted the importance of United responding after halftime. Bryan Mbeumo and Marcus Rashford both had chances after Atletico's opening goal but were unable to convert before the interval, according to the match report.