Rennes have late winner cancelled out for rule you may not be aware of

The French side burst into wild celebration in the 11th minute of stoppage time against Villarreal, thinking they'd secured a 3-3 draw to top their group.

With the Spanish side two points behind heading into the game, a point was enough for Rennes to finish as leaders of Group F, and avoid a play-off for the knockout stages.

And at 3-2 down and the six minutes of allotted stoppage time expired, the home side won a last chance free kick, which Enzo Le Fee cannoned off of the bar, and it looked like that was that.

However, the French midfielder quickly recirculated it, and it headed back into the box, it was then cleared, before Lorenz Assignon blasted home just inside the area.

With his teammates well aware they weren't offside, pandemonium ensued at the Roazhon Park, with substitutes running on the pitch at the dramatic scenes.

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Then, though, VAR called for a check, ruling out the equaliser, leaving everyone baffled.

It wasn't just those on the pitch and in the stadium either, with replays showing every Rennes player was onside for each passage of play, leaving commentators and fans stunned.

Incredibly, though, the infraction was caused by Le Fee himself, who wasn't allowed to collect the ball after it rebounded off the bar.

IFAB rules state that an indirect free kick will be awarded after a set play "if the kicker touches the ball again before it has touched another player".

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The rule is the same for penalties, and more commonly seen when a player hits the frame of the goal during a spot-kick and then moves out of the way to let a teammate finish the rebound.

Rennes, though, were stunned to learn it also applies for free kicks, and their manager, Julien Stephan, honestly admitted that he had no idea what was going on.

"I also learned it at the time," he told the media post-match. "To be very honest, I didn't know. I knew the penalty rule. I didn't think it existed on a free kick.

"It's an emotional rollercoaster. We said to ourselves that there was finally a moment to reward our efforts. And then it's all over."

Even the graphics operators were baffled, with it flashing up on screen that the goal had been ruled 'offside' which wasn't the case.

The result means Rennes will now have to face a team that dropped down from the Champions League in their knockout qualifier, and that could be any one of Galatasaray, Braga, Benfica, Feyenoord, AC Milan, Young Boys or Shakhtar Donetsk.