"UEFA has a duty to fix this" - Marco van Basten reacts to Julian Alvarez's disallowed pen in Atleti vs Real Madrid clash with Instagram post

The bitter recriminations over Julian Alvarez’s canceled spot kick in the penalty shootout of the Champions League clash between Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid have continued. AC Milan and Netherlands legend Marco van Basten is the latest to join the fray.

After Real Madrid secured a 2-1 win at Santiago Bernabeu in the first leg, a 1-0 win by Atletico Madrid at the Metropolitano Stadium in the second leg after 120 minutes meant the aggregate score was level at 2-2. As such, a penalty shootout ensued. The first three penalties were scored as Los Blancos took first.

Alvarez stepped up for Atletico’s second, but the forward slipped, and the ball touched his standing and striking foot before it went into the roof of the net. Upon examination by VAR, it was chalked off for double touch. The decision has since sparked outrage on social media, with many deeming the decision unfair to Los Rojiblancos.

Van Basten is the latest to share his thoughts on the incident. The Dutchman took to his Instagram story and wrote:

''I’m not for Real or Atletico, but Julian Alvarez touches the ball once. @uefa_official has a duty to fix this."

Marco van Basten's Instagram story

The decision to cancel Alvarez’s penalty proved decisive as Real Madrid went on to secure a 4-2 victory in the shootout.

Atletico Madrid issue statement after Julian Alvarez’s spot kick was canceled in UCL penalty shootout against Real Madrid

In the aftermath of the controversial shootout between Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid, UEFA released a statement insisting that Julian Alvarez made double contact with the ball. However, Los Rojiblancos are not convinced and have now issued a counter statement explaining their position on the incident.

The statement read (via Marca):

"Still in "disbelief" over the penalty goal disallowed by VAR against Julian Alvarez in the Champions League elimination, Atletico de Madrid experienced a "very tough day" on Thursday, between the "frustration" of what happened and "the tremendous damage" and "the terrible consequences" of the aforementioned play, considered in the club as an "error in the use of VAR."

"We know that an error in the use of VAR will never change the final result of the match. We are aware that, no matter how many times an error in the use of VAR is witnessed, it will never change the result of a match. In any case, we deeply regret the 'incident' (as UEFA called it in its statement) and the terrible consequences it has had for us. It has destroyed the hopes of millions of fans and the spectacular effort of our team."

As far as LaLiga is concerned, the Madrid rivals are separated by just one point with Barcelona currently leading the three-horse race with 57 points.