Valencia penalty: Gary Neville angered after Chelsea Under-19s win 'scandalous' penalty shoot-out
The La Liga club have announced they will appeal to UEFA over the decision
Valencia head coach Gary Neville was infuriated by the officiating during his youth side’s penalty shoot-out defeat to Chelsea on Tuesday.
A 1-1 UEFA Youth League draw at the Premier League club’s Cobham training ground was won 5-4 on penalties by the home side after Valencia’s first spot-kick, taken by Alberto Gil, was wrongly disallowed.
Footage of the kick shows the ball passing goalkeeper Bradley Collins and crossing the goal-line, only to hit a stanchion and bounce clear.
The match officials ruled that the ball had struck the post and failed to cross the line. Protests from Valencia’s players on the pitch did not convince referee Adrien Jaccottet to reverse his decision and the goal was disallowed.
Former Manchester United right-back Neville registered his frustration on Twitter, posting: “Scandalous!! Can’t believe what I’ve just seen…”
Tempers flared soon after the incident, with the La Liga club’s ‘keeper Antonio Sivera squaring up to Chelsea’s Kasey Palmer after the midfielder scored his penalty.
Valencia have confirmed that they will appeal to UEFA over the decision and, in a statement, urged their young players not to be down heartened by bad luck.
"Do not lose your confidence and your faith in football because of this incident,” it read. "We are confident that Uefa will give an appropriate response to that required by the situation."
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