According to reports, the match took place on Tuesday night at the Emirates Stadium in the first leg of the semi-finals. Paris Saint-Germain had a dream start with an early goal by Ousmane Dembélé, but the game lost its rhythm due to frequent stoppages caused by numerous fouls. In the first half, both Arsenal players, Leandro Trossard and Bukayo Saka, received controversial yellow cards.

Regarding Saka, he was stopped after passing Nuno Mendes, and his reaction earned him a yellow card—a decision that angered the fans, leading to Vincic being booed off the pitch at halftime. Arsenal fans on social media also criticized the referee, calling his performance below the standard of the match.

Alan Shearer, who was present as a pundit, said: “The referee got himself into trouble by giving Trossar an early yellow card. From that moment, I was worried that he was the type of referee who wouldn’t let the game flow, and that’s exactly what happened. The anger of Arsenal fans is understandable. Saka was completely right to fight for the ball. In my opinion, it wasn’t a foul. This game is inherently difficult, but the referee made it harder for himself. He gave out yellow cards too early and spoke to several players. He complicated things for himself.”

At the start of the second half, Shearer continued to stand by his stance. The referee was booed by fans upon re-entering the pitch. Shearer added: “I wasn’t happy with his performance. I felt like he wanted to be the star of the show, not let the game flow naturally.”