‘Justice was done’: Praise for VAR after Neymar penalty decision reversed (VOTE)

There has been praise for the use of the video assistant referee (VAR) system in Brazil’s World Cup game against Costa Rica, after a Neymar penalty decision was reversed when replays showed he had gone down under minimal contact.

The incident came 10 minutes from the end of Brazil and Costa Rica’s Group E clash in St. Petersburg, with the scores level at 0-0.

READ MORE: Brazil 2-0 Costa Rica: Last-gasp Coutinho & Neymar goals save Samba Boys in St. Petersburg

Brazil striker Neymar fell back theatrically in the box, claiming he had been pulled back by Costa Rica defender Giancarlo Gonzalez. There was slight contact from the defender but it appeared to be minimal.

Referee Björn Kuipers awarded the penalty, before consulting the VAR and reversing the decision.

The intervention of VAR has been praised for helping correcting an apparent initial injustice.

Leading the plaudits was ex-England striker Gary Lineker, who tweeted that “justice was done.”

RT special guest host said Dutch referee Kuipers should be given the World Cup final gig after the brave decision to reverse the penalty. 

Others called out the Brazil number 10 for what they felt was a blatant dive.

VAR has come in for criticism since it was decided to use it at the World Cup for the first time this summer.

It allows referees to review decisions in four scenarios: goals, penalties, mistaken identity and red cards.

The system has been criticized in earlier World Cup matches, and in yesterday’s Denmark versus Australia game it was questioned why VAR had not led to a penalty to the Socceroos being overruled despite replays appearing to show unintentional contact by Danish player Yussuf Poulsen.     

There were also questions as to why it was not consulted during England’s game against Tunisia on Monday, when striker Harry Kane appeared to be wrestled in the box on separate occasions without any punishment for the Tunisian defence.

However, the Neymar decision has be lauded as a leading example of the technology in action at this World Cup.

In the event Brazil ran out 2-0 winners thanks to late goals from Phillipe Coutinho and Neymar, giving Brazil their first World Cup win in Russia and consigning Costa Rica to an early World Cup exit.   

Let us know what you think about VAR in our vote below: