The opening minutes of the final proved disastrous for Paris Saint-Germain. Despite dominating possession in the early stages, the French side found themselves trailing 0-1 to Arsenal within the first five minutes. A miscontrolled header from Marquinhos gifted Leandro Trossard the ball, who then set up Kai Havertz. The German striker seized the opportunity, advancing past Matvey Safonov before unleashing a thunderous shot past the goalkeeper (5th minute).

Minutes later, the Parisians believed they had drawn level. Just before the 15-minute mark, Bukayo Saka received a corner from Ousmane Dembélé near the edge of the box. The English international, clearly positioned outside the penalty area, deflected the ball twice with his arms before it touched his hand a third time. PSG immediately protested for a spot kick, but the referee, Daniel Siebert, and the VAR remained silent.

The incident reignited debates over handball interpretations. According to IFAB’s Laws of the Game, not every ball-to-hand contact constitutes an offense. A foul is only awarded if the action is deliberate or if the player “artificially increases the area covered by their body.” In Saka’s case, his arms were visibly extended away from his torso, suggesting the ball’s deflection was an involuntary reaction to clearing it. Officials likely deemed his positioning a natural consequence of the movement.

Did Saka’s body position justify the referee’s decision?

The decision left fans divided. Social media erupted with reactions, some claiming Saka had “handled the ball 27 times in two seconds” and calling for VAR intervention, while others argued the incident was “clearly an accident” and supported the referee’s call. At halftime, PSG had failed to capitalize on several half-chances, leaving the score unchanged.