The Polish Football Association has acknowledged a refereeing mistake in Friday’s Ekstraklasa Tricity derby between Arka Gdynia and Lechia Gdańsk, saying Arka forward Vladislavs Gutkovskis should have been awarded a late penalty.
The match finished 2-2 and featured two long-range strikes, with 19-year-old Oskar Kubiak putting Arka in front early on before former Valmiera FC midfielder Ivan Zhelizko’s effort helped Lechia recover from 2-0 down. Latvian international Alvis Jaunzems was an unused substitute for Lechia Gdańsk, while Gutkovskis came on in the 71st minute.
Soon after taking to the pitch, Gutkovskis was brought down in the Lechia box under what appeared to be a clear foul in front of the goal. Match officials did not award a penalty and VAR did not recommend a review.
In its assessment of the incident, the federation’s refereeing body said both the referee and the VAR team made a mistake. It concluded the defender “illegally held” the striker and that the action “significantly affected” his ability to play the ball, adding that the holding was done with both arms and was “deliberate, forceful, persistent and prolonged”.
Gutkovskis, 30, has played four games since joining Arka, starting once and is yet to score a goal. Jaunzems has remained on the bench in four consecutive matches since returning from injury.
Arka are 15th out of 18 with 26 points from 22 games. Lechia, who have been docked five points for financial issues, are one place above on 28 points.
Arka next travel to Radom on Thursday, while Lechia host Jagiellonia Białystok on Friday.
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Source: https://sportacentrs.com/futbols/legionari/03032026-polijas_federacija_atzist_tiesnesu_kludas
