Rennes' Late Equalizer Disallowed Due to Little-Known Rule in Europa League Match

Villarreal Tops Group F as Rennes Faces Playoff After Dramatic VAR Decision

Rennes was denied a late equalizer in a Europa League match against Villarreal due to a little-known rule.
Enzo le Fee's free-kick hit the post and rebounded back to him, he then put the ball back into the box before Lorenz Assignon scored.
However, the goal was disallowed because under the laws of the game, le Fee was not allowed to be the first player to touch the ball after he took the free kick.
The disallowed goal resulted in Villarreal winning the match and topping Group F, while Rennes finished second and must now go through a playoff.
Rennes manager Julien Stephan admitted he was not aware of this rule regarding free kicks.