Croatia’s 2-1 loss to Portugal in the early hours of Friday morning sparked controversy after two major VAR calls
Luka Modric did not hide his thoughts on VAR after Croatia’s loss to Portugal (Image: Patrick Smith – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)
Luka Modric has spoken out against the use of VAR after Croatia’s controversial exit from the World Cup in the round of 32. The country suffered a 2-1 defeat against Portugal early Friday morning.
Croatia took the lead in the second half with a goal from Ivan Perisic. However, a VAR check determined that Nikola Vlasic had fouled Renato Viega inside the box, allowing Cristiano Ronaldo to equalize from the spot.
Portugal then took the lead in the fourth minute of stoppage time with a goal from Gonzalo Ramos. However, there was still time for more drama as another VAR review ruled out Josko Gvardiol’s equalizer for offside.
Replays showed Igor Matanovic took a slight touch on a cross that fell to the offside Mario Pašalić in the build-up to goal. Some Croatian players expressed frustration on the pitch following this result.
“You can look at the game in two parts. In the first half we weren’t at our best level and were quite withdrawn, but in the second half we played a phenomenal game,” Modric told reporters after the match via Sportke Novosti.
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“That was one of our better games. We could have easily ended it sooner, but we couldn’t manage it. We made mistakes and then some things happened that were unbelievable to me.”
“What’s going on? It’s hard to say what’s wise after the game, but I don’t want to say anything wrong. We can be proud of the way we played in the second half. We deserved more, but that’s simply how football is.”
Asked what the referee had said about his decision to disallow Croatia’s equalizer, he said: “The referee claims that Matanovic touched the ball, but we watched the footage and there is no evidence that he touched the ball. If he didn’t touch the ball, it’s not offside.”
The midfielder made no secret of his thoughts on the use of VAR, pointing to the penalty awarded in the second half to equalize for Portugal. He added: “Some things didn’t go our way. That penalty… VAR would never have been involved if it had been the other way around.”
Mateo Kovacic sheds tears after Croatia’s World Cup defeat against Portugal (Image: Sanjin Strukic/Pixsell/MB Media/Getty Images)
“I said about VAR, when it was first introduced, I didn’t like it. Over time, VAR can be good for some things, but they use it incorrectly, they use it selectively, they use it depending on the size of the team.
“If it’s a 200 percent mistake, VAR should intervene, but if it’s not, if it’s in a gray area, there’s no say. There’s no point in calling VAR.”
“This is not a penalty. Both teams are replaying and pushing, but Vlasic didn’t pull it, he held it, and they both went down. So you can’t award a penalty like that in a game like this.”
“So what I say is, if you’re 200 percent wrong, you have to use it. If you can treat something like this or that, you don’t have a say in it.
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“It annoys me and always puts us at a disadvantage. What is it, let’s move on, we don’t complain about it, but of course, as fate dictates, some things annoy me.
“They decide what you do, what you give up, whether you tear yourself apart, whether you fight, the whole atmosphere. We have young players coming here and you do something like this to them… You’re at fault for that and it’s always to our detriment.
“We won’t talk about it anymore. We can be proud of how we played, how we fought and how we represented Croatia, especially in the second half. That’s the Croatia that everyone knows and why we are so respected and loved in the world. Nothing, let’s move on. Reset now and that’s it.”
Portugal will face one of Spain’s favorites in the round of 16. The game will be played at Dallas Stadium on Monday night at 8 p.m.
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