Croatia’s Petar Sucic shares what the referee said to him about the tricky VAR decision against Portugal.
A frustrated Petar Sucic shared what referee Espen Eskas said about the moment that led to Croatia’s goal against Portugal being ruled out.
Croatia was heartbreakingly knocked out of the World Cup on Thursday after a stoppage-time equalizer by defender Josko Gvardiol was disallowed following a long VAR review.
The play began with a cross from the left wing. At first, it looked like Igor Matanovic missed his header. Then, the ball hit Portugal’s Renato Veiga and bounced to Mario Pasalic, who set up Gvardiol’s goal in the 103rd minute.
But after reviewing, the officials said sensors inside the Adidas Trionda ball showed a slight touch by Matanovic. This made Pasalic offside during the build-up. Matanovic himself admitted he made “slight contact” with the ball.
“Honestly, I think I felt a slight touch with my hair,” he said, according to A Bola. “I asked the referee because I wasn’t 100% sure if I touched it. He told me the ball has a chip, and it detected a slight touch, so it was offside.”
Even though FIFA confirmed the sensors detected contact, fans and players are still talking about the incident.
On Thursday evening, Croatia midfielder Petar Sucic opened up about what referee Eskas, who’s from Norway, told them.
“The referee said he didn’t see our striker touch the ball. He said the ball has a sensor, so he made his decision based on that. But, honestly, I don’t understand it,” said Sucic, who plays for Inter Milan.
“It’s hard to explain, but we hope someone will explain it clearly because from what I saw, Matanovic didn’t touch the ball. For me, it was a regular goal. I just don’t know.”
“I think they need to watch the replay more carefully. They told me my goal was a tricky situation and needed more checking, but the referee made his call in just a second. It’s a tough call.”
“I don’t know. That’s how it went today. Luck was on their side,” he added.
Croatia’s coach Zlatko Dalic was very critical of the refereeing, calling it “very bad.”
He said, “There was not a single foul or interruption in our favor. The refereeing was poor, but since Croatia lost, we don’t have much right to complain. I’m sorry.”