**Bradley Barcola was denied a penalty during France’s 1-0 win over Belgium in the UEFA Nations League, with the Liverpool winger expressing his disappointment at the decision after the game.**
The 23-year-old completed a £123m move from PSG to Liverpool in the summer and will need to get used to similar decisions in the Premier League.
Unfortunately, VAR has done very little to improve the decision-making by English referees, with Liverpool one of the teams most frustrated by poor calls in the seasons since the technology was introduced in 2020.
On Monday evening, a challenge from Belgium’s Nathan Ngoy wasn’t reviewed, and Barcola feels as though the call warranted a second look.
It was less of a challenge and more of a blatant push.
> This challenge on Barcola was a pen btw, that's a clear push on the back. [pic.twitter.com/fW2PELU4v1](https://t.co/fW2PELU4v1)
>
> — col!nstwt (@twiceatwt) [September 29, 2026](https://x.com/twiceatwt/status/2104845133275451667?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)
Speaking about the decision, Barcola said: _“If I talk about it, I’m probably in trouble, but I have to say what I think. I felt the contact. I was inside the box, and I was trying to continue the action._
_“Maybe the referee saw it differently, but from where I was, it affected the play. What frustrates me most is that these decisions can change a game. You work for 90 minutes, and sometimes one moment decides everything._
_“I don’t want to complain about referees in the Nations League or Premier League, I just want consistency. If there is contact and it affects the attacker, at least take another look. I’ll probably get fined for saying this, but honestly, I thought it was a penalty.”_
Should footballers be punished for critiquing referee calls?
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Something I have always taken issue with is how managers and players are punished for speaking about controversial calls.
I understand why the rule is in place, but in a day and age where officials have the ability to watch decisions back and refer the on-field ref to review it on the VAR monitor, it feels outdated.
If a referee truly believes he made the right call, why would he need to be protected against free discourse?
Penalising players for having a difference of opinion goes against the spirit of the game in my opinion.