Maldini weighs in on Real Madrid - Mallorca controversies: 'It can change'

This start of the season has been excellent for Real Madrid, achieving 3 wins out of 3 possible. However, its match against Mallorca had several questionable refereeing decisions due to the disallowed goals. "When the offside is so close, a frame up or a frame down can change whether it's in line or not."

These are words that show Maldini's stance regarding the decisions made by VAR. "I don't like it," Maldini added to his opinion to make it clear that situations as close as this one are difficult to call. Although he mentioned agreeing with the first disallowed goal for Mbappé, Maldini was doubtful about the refereeing.

This only proves that the disallowed goals against Real Madrid had to be analyzed more thoroughly. According to what we know at Defensa Central, the club was somewhat dissatisfied with this situation. Despite having secured the win, the team could have been harmed by the decisions made by both VAR and Sánchez Martínez.

Doubts about the refereeing

Since last season, Real Madrid has made its opinion about Spanish refereeing clear. By proposing changes to improve refereeing in all LaLiga matches, the club was truly seeking a more professional and transparent competition. This was to avoid situations like the one it experienced in its match against Mallorca.

Two goals disallowed for offside and another for a handball by Arda Güler are the reason for the team's and its fans' discontent. The offsides, above all, have been bothersome because, as Maldini said, they were so close. Even though several plays in past seasons have been disallowed for this, what happened to Real Madrid has been different.

This is because the supposed offside by Kylian Mbappé was never entirely clear. Both VAR and Sánchez Martínez analyzed a play that deserved to be observed more thoroughly only superficially. Even so, even after expressing his opinion, Maldini made it clear that the disallowed goal for Mbappé was the right call.

VAR's failures

The match against Mallorca is not the first time Real Madrid has been harmed by close plays. This shows the need to improve VAR for upcoming matches. While this technology has been a great advancement in soccer, it's still far from perfect.