New England manager Thomas Tuchel may have felt old wounds resurface as Aston Villa conceded a controversial penalty during their Champions League defeat to Club Brugge. After a bizarre mix-up on the pitch, Villa captain Tyrone Mings was penalised in a similar situation to one that occurred between Arsenal and Tuchel's former club Bayern Munich.
After Emiliano Martinez passed the ball to Mings from a goal kick early in the second half on Wednesday, both Mings and Martinez appeared to believe that play had not resumed. However, after strong appeals from the Villa players, German referee Tobias Stieler ruled that the ball was in play, awarding a penalty. The Belgian team won with a 1-0 margin after Hans Vanaken scored from the penalty.
In April, Bayern Munich faced a similar situation during their quarter-final match with Arsenal, according to The Mirror. As Arsenal centre-back Gabriel Magalhaes picked up the ball from goalkeeper David Raya in that match, Bayern's squad and coaching staff appealed for a penalty, but it wasn't awarded.
Tuchel expressed frustration post-match, claiming the referee admitted to making a mistake but did not feel it appropriate to award a penalty for what he termed a "kid's mistake. "
Villa's penalty incident cost Mings their 100 percent record in European competition, as it was their first goal conceded in Europe this season. Aside from that, Unai Emery's team has now gone four games without a victory across all competitions, raising concerns about the challenge of competing across multiple fronts.