(Reuters) – Rennes manager Julien Stephan expressed his fluctuating emotions after his team had a late equalizer disallowed in their Europa League match against Villarreal due to an obscure football rule.
Enzo le Fee’s free kick in the 101st minute hit the woodwork and rebounded to the midfielder, who then put the ball back into the box before Lorenz Assignon scored.
The Rennes players celebrated the goal, only to have it disallowed after a VAR check, with most of the fans in the French stadium believing it was for offside.
However, according to the laws of the game, Le Fee was not allowed to be the first player to touch the ball after taking the free kick.
“If the player taking the kick-off touches the ball again before it has touched another player, an indirect free kick … is awarded,” the law states.
“I knew the rule existed for penalties, I didn’t know it existed for free kicks,” Stephan said.
Villarreal’s victory propelled them to the top of Group F, ensuring direct qualification for the round of 16. Rennes finished second and will now have to go through a playoff against a team dropping down from the Champions League to qualify.
(Reporting by Chiranjit Ojha in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
