An apparent "ghost goal" scored by Le Mans in a Ligue 1 match last weekend has been ruled legitimate by French football 's refereeing body, despite Auxerre manager Will Still insisting that television replays proved it was "impossible."
During their 1-1 draw with Auxerre, Le Mans went ahead through a header from Lucas Buades that Auxerre keeper Paul Nardi appeared to stop on the goal line.
Match referee Willy Delajod received a signal on his watch from the goal-line technology system and awarded the goal, with the decision being supported by the VAR officials, whose live audio discussions were released following a review by Arbitration Directorate - the body that oversees refereeing in France - on Wednesday.
Former Southampton boss Still was left fuming by this decision and repeatedly claimed post-match interviews that officials and technology erroneously mistook his goalkeeper's gloved hand behind the line for the ball.
"It's his glove, I swear to you it's his glove on this play," Still said on Sunday. "If you saw the image from behind the goal. It's impossible that this ball has entered the goal."
Still referenced a specific angle on Ligue 1+, the top flight's official streaming service, which seemed to demonstrate that the shot was saved, though recognition of this replay was omitted from the Arbitration Directorate's response.
"Following the header by Le Mans player number 18 (Buades), the referee's watch (Willy Delajod) vibrated to indicate that the ball had fully crossed the goal line," a statement from the Arbitration Directorate read.
"The video assistant referees (VAR Cyril Gringore and his assistant Cedric Dos Santos) carefully reviewed the available footage but were unable to identify anything that contradicted the signal transmitted by the technology on the goal line.
"Given the exceptional nature of the situation, the referee decided to consult the available footage himself at the side of the pitch. This footage did not allow him to definitively establish that the ball had not fully crossed the line. The goal decision therefore stands."
Ligue 1 has utilised goal-line technology since it was first deployed at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
