PSG vs Newcastle: Referee's mistake costs Magpies a win

Newcastle manager Eddie Howe was left fuming after referee Szymon Marciniak gave a controversial penalty to Paris Saint-Germain during their Champions League clash.

The Magpies were on the verge of a stunning 1-0 win at the Parc des Princes thanks to Callum Wilson’s first-half goal, but Marciniak overturned his own decision and pointed to the spot after consulting VAR. Kylian Mbappe scored the equalizer, denying Newcastle a historic victory.

Many players were unhappy with the decision, and many of them said few things about the referee. Still, the most furious was the Newcastle United Manager Eddie Howe, who lashed out at the referee.

Howe said he felt “robbed” by the decision, which he claimed was influenced by the PSG players surrounding the referee. He argued that Tino Livramento had not handled the ball deliberately, as it had bounced off his chest before hitting his arm. He also said that Livramento’s arm was in a natural position and that the incident happened too fast to be judged by a slow-motion replay.

“It was a very poor decision, and it’s hugely frustrating for us as you know how little time there was left in the game. There is nothing we can do about it now,” Howe said. “The referee had to be stronger to not award the penalty. He was under extreme pressure from the PSG players, who were very vocal and very aggressive. He should have stuck with his original call, which was correct.”

Howe praised his players for their brave performance against the French giants, who had Neymar, Lionel Messi, and Mbappe in their starting line-up. He said his team had defended well and created some chances of their own despite being underdogs. He said he hoped the result would give them confidence for their Premier League survival battle.

“We rode our luck at times, but we also showed great character and resilience. We ran out of luck at the end, but I’m very proud of the players and how they performed,” he said. “We came here with a game plan, and we executed it very well. We frustrated PSG, and we had some opportunities to score more goals. We have to take the positives from this game and build on them.”