Conmebol admitted that VAR was wrong in not awarding a penalty to Vinicius

The Conmebol recognized this Wednesday that the VAR erred by failing to review the field referee’s decision regarding the Colombian’s “reckless” contact Daniel Muñoz to Vinicius Júnior inside the area.

The game took place in the 42nd minute of the match in between Brazil and Colombia (1-1), when Canarinha defeated the coffee team 1-0, at the end of Group D of United States America’s Cup.

Muñoz cuts off a Vinicius run inside the area, but Venezuelan referee Jesús Valenzuela found no foul and ordered the game to continue. “Touch the ball,” Valenzuela said in audio released Wednesday by Conmebol.

VAR, led by Argentine Mauro Vigliano, Then he acted. “I need to see if he touches the ball. I want to see if the direction of the ball changes (…) If he pinches the ball, right? Yes,” the VAR voice indicated.

“Jesús (Valenzuela), very tight, you can resume. He pinches the ball when he lowers his foot and there he gives it momentum, then contact is made,” he added, addressing the field referee.

however, Conmebol investigated the incident and described it in the following way: “In a dispute with the ball inside the area, a defender does not touch the ball and as a result of the dispute, careless contact occurs for the action. The referee failed to observe the action and lets the game continue.”

The entity indicated that The VAR, in protocol fashion, begins to review the play “with different angles, speeds and considerations, and failed to determine that the defender was not handling the ball before making reckless contact with the Brazilian forward.

“Because of this, VAR wrongly confirms the original decision on the field,” admitted the South American Football Confederation (Conmebol).

The resolution of the play was harshly criticized by the Brazilian coach, Dorival Júnior, at the end of the match, which ended in a draw (1-1), because shortly after the penalty that was not awarded to Vini, Daniel Muñoz himself would return the point to equalize.

“The referee is decisive. Only inside the stadium he and the VAR did not see a penalty, which must have existed. Brazil was hurt a lot,” criticized the coach.

In his opinion, that maximum penalty could change the course of the game, becauses Canarinha has the possibility to go 2-0 and judge the counterattack.

The coach also did not think that Vinicius’ warning was correct. received shortly after the start of the match for dislocating James Rodríguez’s arm near the spot, and this prevented him from playing the quarterfinal match against Uruguay due to an accumulation of cards. “Everything that happened was strange,” he said.