Borussia Mönchengladbach defeated 1. FC Köln 3:1 in the Rhine derby of the Bundesliga, but the three penalty decisions sparked controversy. Referee Deniz Aytekin was sent to the monitor twice by VAR, enraging Cologne coach Lukas Kwasniok. The Gladbachers celebrated their first home win of the season.
The derby on matchday 10 of the Bundesliga ended with a 3:1 victory for Borussia Mönchengladbach over 1. FC Köln (1:0). The Gladbachers extended their winning streak to three competitive games and improved to 12th place, while Cologne suffered their second away loss in a row.
Referee Deniz Aytekin was at the center of debates due to three penalties awarded. Two for Mönchengladbach were only whistled after VAR interventions. On the first decision, Aytekin said: «The video assistant sent me out and then I saw that it was clearly a clear contact in the knee area. And if we have this technology, we should use it.» He initially missed the handball by Kristoffer Lund, involved in the first penalty: «There were three players like a wall in front of me. What I then saw on the monitor was a clear penalty.»
The third penalty for Cologne for a foul on Ragnar Ache, Aytekin himself called «certainly a harsh penalty»: «Whether one would always give it, I don't know. That annoys me, of course.» The goals: Philipp Sander (45.+2), Kevin Diks (61., handball penalty), Haris Tabaković (64.) for Gladbach; Luca Waldschmidt (90.+2, penalty) for Cologne. Tabaković had previously missed the first penalty for Mönchengladbach.
Cologne coach Lukas Kwasniok was outspoken: «I don't like VAR, I hate VAR. It distorts everything. I have the feeling that VAR is the boss now, not the referee anymore.» Sporting director Thomas Kessler was more diplomatic: «I consider Deniz Aytekin one of the best German referees. If we have one of the best refs on the pitch who stands relatively well and assesses the situations so that there are no penalties, we should discuss when we send the referee to the monitor at all.» The decisions highlight ongoing debates about VAR in the league.