Under the floodlights of a Classique that left Marseille with another painful defeat, the biggest refereeing debate centred on Amine Gouiri’s fall in the Paris Saint-Germain area. The French refereeing department has now backed François Letexier’s decision not to award a penalty, ruling that Désiré Doué played the ball before the Marseille forward went down.
Gouiri appeal rejected after VAR review
Marseille were beaten 2-1 by PSG, their fifth successive loss, but the match could have taken a different shape in the 38th minute. Gouiri drove into the visitors’ box after a sharp dribble and fell following a challenge from Doué, prompting calls for a penalty.
Letexier did not point to the spot and, although VAR reviewed the incident, he was not instructed to visit the pitchside monitor. The assessment was that there had been no clear error in the original decision.
- Doué stretched his right leg in front of Marseille’s No. 9 and got a touch on the ball.
- Officials judged that Gouiri was already moving forward off balance before the contact occurred.
- Audio from the video review included the verdict: “The ball was played, check complete.”
- Because there was genuine contact between the players, Gouiri was not booked for simulation.
The refereeing department said that contact alone could not make the challenge illegal, adding that the expected outcome was for the referee to wave play on.
Marseille keep their complaints in check
Despite strong reaction in the Marseille press, neither Bruno Genesio nor his players publicly launched a sustained attack on Letexier after the final whistle. The Marseille coach accepted the defeat in a sporting manner, in contrast to the more heated refereeing reaction seen elsewhere in European football over the weekend.
The refereeing review also found no issue with the two yellow cards shown to Marseille captain Timothy Weah during the Classique.
PSG ultimately took the points through the decisive contribution of substitute Ferran Torres and Marquinhos’ winning goal. The result deepened the pressure around Genesio and his side as their losing run reached five matches.
Lens denied penalty in Monaco defeat
The league’s refereeing department did, however, acknowledge an important mistake from the weekend’s other major fixture. Monaco’s 2-1 victory over Lens on Friday should have included a first-half penalty for the visitors.
With the score still 0-0 in the 18th minute, a handball in the Monaco penalty area should have been punished, giving Florian Thauvin and his Lens team-mates an opportunity to take the lead.
- Monaco defeated Lens 2-1 on Friday night.
- The missed handball occurred in the 18th minute, before either side had scored.
- The refereeing body concluded that Lens should have received a penalty.
- Paris Brunner scored for Monaco roughly 15 minutes after the disputed incident.
Unlike the Gouiri-Doué collision in Marseille, the Lens incident has been formally classed as an officiating error — one that came at a crucial early point in a tight match at Monaco.
