Real Madrid star Dani Ceballos reacts to Diego Simeone's rant about Julian Alvarez's disallowed penalty with cheeky gesture on social media

Real Madrid star Dani Ceballos reacted to Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone's comments on Julian Alvarez's disallowed penalty in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16. Los Blancos advanced to the next round on March 12 after a 4-2 win on penalties in the second leg against Los Colchoneros.

After a 2-2 aggregate draw, the Round of 16 tie between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid moved to extra time and eventually penalties. Despite scoring against Los Blancos goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, Julian Alvarez's penalty was ruled out due to a supposed double touch. A VAR check led to the goal being canceled, leading to a major drawback for Atletico Madrid.

The decision led to a massive controversy among fans and pundits, with many claiming there was not enough conclusive evidence to rule out Alvarez's strike. In the post-match press conference, Atletico's head coach Diego Simeone hit back at the decision and said via Fabrizio Romano:

"To anyone here: raise your hand if you saw that Julián touched the ball twice in the penalty. Come on! And? Ready? Nobody raises theirs. Another question. I’ve never seen VAR call to review a penalty in a shootout."

Shortly after Simeone's outburst, Real Madrid star Dani Ceballos seemingly took a cheeky dig at the coach. He quoted an X post with Simeone's video statement in Spanish and responded with a hand emoji.

Here's the post:

Real Madrid will next face Arsenal in the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals on April 9.

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UEFA releases official statement explaining Julian Alvarez's disallowed penalty against Real Madrid in the UCL knockouts

Julian Alvarez - Source: Getty

The UEFA released an official statement explaining the VAR's decision to disallow Julian Alvarez's penalty against Real Madrid during the shootout in the UCL. They maintained that there was a double touch to the ball from Alvarez during the strike.

The apex body wrote (via Fabrizio Romano):

"Atlético de Madrid enquired with UEFA over the incident, which led to the disallowance of the kick from the penalty mark taken by Julián Alvarez at the end of yesterday’s UEFA Champions League match against Real Madrid."

"Although minimal, the player made contact with the ball using his standing foot before kicking it, as shown in the attached video clip. Under the current rule (Laws of the Game, Law 14.1), the VAR had to call the referee signaling that the goal should be disallowed," it added.

However, the UEFA also noted that they will carry out discussions about whether the rule should be reviewed in cases where the double touch can be deemed unintentional.

"UEFA will enter discussions with FIFA and IFAB to determine whether the rule should be reviewed in cases where a double touch is clearly unintentional," the statement said.

With Atletico Madrid bowing out of the UCL, they will now focus on gaining a lead in LaLiga. They will also look to beat Barcelona in the Copa del Rey semifinal second leg after a 4-4 draw in their first meeting.