Harry Maguire should have been awarded penalty against Iran.. there was no consistency and VAR let itself down
VAR was at its inconsistent best in England’s World Cup thrashing of Iran.
Harry Maguire should have been awarded a penalty in the third minute for a clear holding offence by Rouzbeh Cheshmi inside the box.
GettyHarry Maguire should have been awarded a penalty, says ex-ref Mark Halsey[/caption]
Yet the Three Lions conceded a spot-kick in the tenth minute of second half added time when John Stones tugged the shirt of Morteza Pouraliganji.
For all the positives of new technology, this is where VAR let itself down because there was no consistency within the 90-minutes of yesterday’s 6-2 triumph.
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There was less contact from Stones’ shirt pull than the bear hug Maguire received. Even Stones was manhandled in the same incident, ironically by Pouraliganji.
Proximity of a player challenging for the ball is a factor for officials to consider but it was a clear penalty for me and I cannot understand why Brazilian referee Raphael Claus did not point to the spot.
Claus was looking towards England’s centre-back pairing when Maguire and Stones were both held around their waists and wrestled to the ground but he allowed play to continue.
GettyIran were later awarded a soft penalty for a shirt pull by John Stones[/caption]
PAReferee Raphael Claus made the right call in stopping the game when Iran goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand received a concussion, says Mark Halsey[/caption]
Getty Images – GettyEx-Premier League ref Halsey (pictured in 2011) was scathing of VAR’s performance in the match[/caption]
Pre-tournament, refs’ chief Pierluigi Collina said blocking will be targeted by officials in Qatar. Iran duo Cheshmi and Pouraliganji got away with it on this occasion and thankfully it did not matter in regards to the result.
But I’m convinced this incident will be flagged up when the refs hold their debrief. Any referee at World Cup level such as Claus must see the holding offence in real time.
However, Uruguayan VAR official Leodan Gonzalez should have intervened because it was a clear and obvious error and defenders should not be allowed to commit these offences.
England are a big threat at set-pieces and I’m sure boss Gareth Southgate will want the issue ironed out by the officials.
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Yet, after ignoring the early pen shout for the Three Lions, Gonzalez got involved late in the game for something minor.
Stones tugged the shirt of Pouraliganji at a free-kick but if we’re awarding penalties for that then brace yourselves for a lot of spot-kicks during the finals.
Ref Claus would not have seen the slight pull but as soon as he was told to go to the monitor you knew a penalty would be given.
Do we really want a knock-out game later in the tournament decided by something like this?
Claus made the right call when he stopped play for Iran goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand to receive treatment.
When there is a head injury or concussion the referee then allows the medical teams to take charge.
