Ex-Premier League referee Mark Halsey slams decision to give Portugal penalty at World Cup against Uruguay as ‘shocking’
PORTUGAL secured their place in the World Cup last-16 after a win over Uruguay.
Bruno Fernandes scored the opener, although Cristiano Ronaldo is claiming it, before he converted a controversial late penalty to seal a 2-0 victory.
Here former Premier League ref Mark Halsey explains why the spot-kick was the wrong call:
Poortugal's late penalty - awarded after a VAR intervention - against Uruguay was a shocking decision.
Iranian referee Alireza Faghani pointed to the spot for a handball against Jose Maria Gimenez after he was nutmegged by Bruno Fernandes.
This was a really poor call by the officials.
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Uruguay defender Gimenez went to block the ball.
But he was falling over and his arm was behind him to break his fall.
He did not make his body bigger, it was not a deliberate act and the proximity was also a factor.
This was not a clear and obvious error so I have no idea why VAR official Abdulla Al-Marri of Qatar even got involved.
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Ref Faghani should have been stronger and stuck with his original decision.
Even his body language after viewing the monitor suggested he did not want to give the penalty.
Fernandes' spot-kick could be crucial in determining who qualifies from Group H after it sealed a 2-0 win.
Luis Suarez and his teammates will now have to face a Ghana side intent on revenge in their final group game.
Ghana sit second on four points from two games after the win over South Korea earlier.
But Uruguay, who have one from their two outings so far, can overtake them with a win.
