In the seventh minute of second-half stoppage time, with Real trailing hosts Benfica 2-3, Anatoliy Trubin held the ball, preparing for a goal kick. As the home goalkeeper tossed the ball up to kick it, Mbappe quickly flicked it away and tapped it into the empty net.

However, Italian referee Davide Massa whistled for an indirect free-kick and disallowed the goal. Due to an excessive reaction to this decision, striker Rodrygo Goes received a second yellow card, resulting in a red card and expulsion from the game.

Mbappe (left) takes the ball as Trubin prepares to kick it, during Real's 2-4 loss to Benfica at Da Luz stadium, Lisbon, Portugal, on the final matchday of the Champions League group stage on the evening of 28/1. *Photo: screenshot*

On social media, many fans questioned why the goal was disallowed. User @CallumGraant wrote on X: "Why was Mbappe's goal not allowed? The goalkeeper had tossed the ball up and Mbappe touched it first".

@LocosRealMadrid even claimed: "Mbappe's goal was legitimate, disallowed by the referee because Mr. Massa did not want Real to win. Share this post. It's a disgrace".

In reality, the act of a goalkeeper tossing the ball up for a kick is still considered within the goalkeeper's control. According to Law 12.3 of FIFA's Laws of the Game, a goalkeeper is considered to be in control of the ball with their hands in three situations: one: the ball is between their hands, or between one hand and any surface; two: holding the ball in an outstretched open hand; three: bouncing the ball on the ground or throwing it into the air.

Another point of this law states that "a goalkeeper cannot be challenged by an opponent when in control of the ball with their hands".

Law 12.2 stipulates that a player will be penalized with an indirect free-kick if they "prevent a goalkeeper from releasing the ball from their hands or kick or attempt to kick the ball when the goalkeeper is in the process of releasing it".

This was not the first time Mbappe attempted such a cunning goal. In a match against Lorient in Ligue 1 on the evening of 30/4/2023, the striker, then playing for PSG, scored a legitimate equalizer to make it 1-1. Goalkeeper Yvon Mvogo mistakenly thought the referee had blown the whistle, so he placed the ball on the ground to kick it. Mbappe quickly seized it and kicked it into the empty net.

The difference between Mbappe's legitimate goal that year and the disallowed goal this time is that when the goalkeeper tosses the ball up, they still retain control. However, once the ball is placed on the ground, the goalkeeper no longer has control, and an attacking player is permitted to challenge for it.

Real subsequently conceded another goal, suffering a 2-4 defeat and losing their direct qualification to the round of 16. Meanwhile, Benfica secured just enough of a win to narrowly advance, entering the play-off round in second place. Jose Mourinho's squad has a 50% chance of facing Real again.