The meeting between Brest and Lens was a decisive turning point with the attribution of a penalty in favour of the Sangs and Gold, which finally tipped the balance in their favour. The Technical Directorate of Arbitration (DTA) has decided unequivocally: the fault of hand of Abdoulaye Ndiaye in its own surface was indeed sanctionable. By deviating the ball from the right arm, the Brest defender “artificially increased the covered area”, thus fully justifying the arbitral decision. This gesture, which ended a dangerous action, recalled the importance of the rigour of the Laws of the game in relation to any subjective interpretation. The DTA clarified that prior contact with the bust or hip does not in any way cancel the fault of the hand, a point of settlement often unknown but crucial in this kind of situation.

Lens was able to take advantage of this opportunity to take the ascendant and win on the Brest lawn with a final score of 3-1. If the penalty did not suffer from any contestation from the authorities, the red card inflicted on Ndiaye caused a wave of misunderstanding among the supporters and staff of the Stade Brestois. Eric Roy, the team coach, expressed his astonishment: “That you whistle penalty, I can understand. But you’d have to explain why there’s red cardboard.” The DTA has not yet clarified this situation, leaving doubt and fuelling discussions in both social networks and spans.

If one can understand the agitation of the staff and the Brest supporters regarding red cardboard, it is important to point out that Pierre Lees-Melou should have been expelled following a nasty sole on Adrien Thomasson. A dangerous gesture that definitely deserved a red card.