Wednesday 20 June 2018

2018 FIFA World Cup Match 20: Iran - Spain (discussion)

Let's discuss here the performance of Andrés Cunha in Iran - Spain. Good luck to the officiating team!
Match #20
Kazan, 20 June 2018 20:00 CET
Iran - Spain
Referee: Andrés Cunha (URU)
Assistant Referee 1: Nicolás Taran (URU)
Assistant Referee 2: Mauricio Espinoza (URU)
Fourth Official: Julio Bascuñán (CHI)
Fifth Official: Christian Schiemann (CHI)
VAR: Mauro Vigliano (ARG)
AVAR1: Wilton Sampaio (BRA)
AVAR 2: Alexander Guzman (COL)
AVAR 3: Massimiliano Irrati (ITA)

108 comments:

  1. Good early (and easy) foul against Carvajal near the corner in the 4th minute there.

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  2. Cunha looks to be a good referee in managing players.

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    1. Good verbal approach to Ramos.

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    2. Ramos is always a handful for any and all referees

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    3. @Chefren I told this to you about 2 months ago, see now :D

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  3. Cunha reminds me of an old school 90's type referee. Not so much because of his style. But because of his look. He wears the tight short shorts and the loose fitting shirts.

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    1. On fire 🔥 The Mateu Lahoz type reaction :D Excellent warning :D

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  5. First harsh foul and Cunha was definitely angry at Hajsafi. Never saw a ref that angry so far.

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  6. Very, very strong reaction against dissent. However, missed YC for the foul. Reckless stamp.

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  7. Julio Bascuñán alreadu busy facing protests from the benches...

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    1. He handles it nicely. Listens to the coach and calms him down with friendly, yes firm, body language. Impressive.

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  8. Was it truly necessary for Cunha to be so visibly agitated? If I learned anything from watching Iran in their 1st match is, 1) They are going to argue and dissent each and every call. 2) They don't pull out of tackles or challenges. Thus they hit opposing players late after the ball is long gone quite often. Jordi Alba already got crunched.

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    1. Did you see Marciniak yelling at Pavon at the top of his voice when the mistake was from Marciniak himself?? I think Cunha's one was very firm but quite less than that... It is not a bad thing to do at least it gives out the message that you can't mess with this referee... If one does that after a wrong call it makes one look silly I agree but in isolation it's an effective method with unruly players... CONMEBOL are very familiar in using this type of a style and approach! Maybe after a rejected penalty appeal or things like that where VAR can change the decision, such a thing maybe avoided by the referee as there is chance of a decision reversal then!

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    2. Agreed Soham. Marciniak made himself look worse off by attempting to oversell his missed call. Trust me, as a Hispanic referee, I know about passion and volatility all too well. And I know that at times we must be verbally firm but without looking like the players are making us lose focus. And I guess that I'm just not a fan of the demeaning finger waving type of scolding Cunha used.

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  9. 38’ RC for Diego Costa?
    He quite clearly intentionally stomps on the GK’s foot.

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  10. I don‘t quite know what to think of Cunha‘s player management. A rather hectical approach like Lahoz with many gestures - I‘m not a fan of this style and I don‘t think this makes the game calmer. However, Cunha seems to be totally focussed and the match is under control. I‘m sure we will see an interesting first half.

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    1. OT :

      As I am reminded of Mateu Lahoz, I suddenly get excited that he has a game tomorrow Denmark v Australia... Life becomes suddenly all the more interesting, I can't wait to see Mateu on the pitch :D :D

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  11. Too arrogant approach (gestures, shouting, etc.) for my taste. He was calm and composed in his first game and suddenly he changed his style so much. Maybe he wants to imitate Marciniak's body language?

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    1. Is this some kind of preparation taken by watching the previous games of Spain and Iran?? May be seeing all the preparatory materials provided by FIFA, the referee has opted for this kind of approach?? I don't think he will imitate Marciniak's body language because South American referees are anyway more fierce than our UEFA guys can ever be but they don't show it in FIFA for obvious reasons :D Jokes apart, I think this style does work but at the same time not really an approach I personally prefer! I rather like the classy approach and body language on the field like Kuipers, Cakir, Skomina et all :)

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  12. WARNING: BIASED COMMENT.

    Cunha was horrible. Not only failing to detect Iran's constant simulation, but also unbelievable time management. Is this really what FIFA wants? A goalkeeper losing more than 5 minutes just on his own? A defender who throws himself to the ground three times after being told to leave the pitch if he is really injured? Adding just 3 minutes when clearly a lot more was lost and a substitution was performed? Is this good management not having any cards so far?

    I'll tell you the answer: no. It is awful management. Things will likely go this way: Iran will keep losing time. Spain's squad will get nervous. Hard fouls will follow. Probably mass confrontations if Spain doesn't score soon. He will very likely loss control. Will it be because of a bad second half but a good first one? No. It will be down to following a guideline that doesn't suit this match. It will be down to not penalising LotG infringements when a team is clearly making this their tactic to draw the match

    Let's see how this ends, but I wouldn't keep my hopes up.

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    1. I hope this doesn't turn out to be true for the 2nd half :(

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  13. Cunha in conversation with Pique, Ramos and Costa in the tunnel... Seems to be explaining something to the players!

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  14. OT : there is a rumor told by a Morocco player arguing that Mark Geiger was so impressed by CR7 that Pepe confessed him that USA ref wanted the player shirt and asked him on first half. Fake news but easily not a good advertising for Geiger...

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    1. I agree the probability of this being true is non existent. But there is a prior incident that involves a referee that is actually active and in Russia. None other than Geiger's fellow countryman, Jair Marruffo. I'll attach the article for those of you interested in reading about it.

      sbisoccer.com/2009/05/us-soccer-suspends-marrufo-two-weeks-for-jerseygate

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    2. Must be complete nonsense... If Geiger does it Busacca will simply send him home immediately!

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    3. N. Amrabat from Marocco told the dutch television that Geiger had asked during the first half for the shirt of Pepe. Pepe told him personally.

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    4. With all the incidents and drama in the build up to the World Cup that involved selected referee's. I honestly don't know what to think and/or expect anymore from any of these guys. Maybe some of them actually think that they are bigger than the game and above the Law. And as such make poor decisions and choices.

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    5. How many jerseys does Geiger want? :D Ronaldo and Pepe reported... I'm sure he can't be that big a Portugal fan :D Most probably some cheap, attention-seeking tactics from Morocco after getting knocked out from the competition;

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    6. For the good of the game hopefully it's just that. Because the scandal riddled and embattled FIFA Referee Committee can't handle yet another off the pitch Referee related incident.

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  15. VAR got that one right -- something the AR could never see (the ball hit Iran's #6, who was in offside position, but in melee of players.

    Disappointment for Iran with the tying goal called back, but ultimately the right call.

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    1. It was not VAR but the AR who originally calles the offside, amazing decision!

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    2. The AR actually raised his flag immediately. Excellent decision by him

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    3. He did? I didn't see it on the video at all -- I'll take your word for that! :)

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    4. Well, AR2 Mauricio Espinosa clearly signalled offside immediately after the ball went it and the VAR only confirmed it... Fantastic call by Espinosa!

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    5. I stand corrected, I see the flag raise now, but having said that, he's almost 4m behind the offside line and has a poor view of the actual offside situation there.

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    6. But somehow he got it right :D

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  16. 63rd minute... here's a clip of the VAR view: https://www.clippituser.tv/c/vxbpxd

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  17. Excellent offside call. Uruguayan crew doing very well so far.

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  18. Excellent offside from AR2. Quiet big, but not an easy to see who played the ball in that mess. Allowed play from the first correctly, but after that clear offside.

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  19. I'm disappointed by the decrease of transparence during the last VAR interventions. First 3 interventions were clear, with symbol, showing the VAR monitor, in Belgium-Panama even offside lines. Now, the triple screen has become an inflation, and during 90 seconds of review no VAR sequences shown. Not good for transperence.

    Otherwise, I agree, good performances today.

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    1. Yes, very difficult to understand the situation for the TV audience and no clear resolution (with offside lines and pointing out it was the second situation).

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    2. This is not an on-field review so no graphics were expected anyway... This was just confirmation of AR2's excellent call!

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    3. Agree Soham nonetheless FIFA must try to be as transparent as possible in 90 seconds of a VAR review, even if outcome is 'confirmation'. This wasn't transparent.

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    4. They could have shown the offside situation using the demarcating lines... That could've made it easy to understand for viewers, I think!

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    5. Frankly, the commentary guys needed it too! They thought it was on the initial free kick in. :)

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  20. Missed YC for Iranian #19 on 75'?

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    1. I think yes... That should've been a YC for SPA, I think!

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    2. Definitely! Harsh tactical foul in front of the box, no try to play the ball!

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  21. I feel like we're going back to the WC 2014 NO YC policy.... For me, that was (IRN foul 76') a mandatory one.

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  22. On that melee that happened on Iran's goal line directly in front of their goal with players all over the place to include on the ground. I know Cunha whistled for something. But I missed what exactly was it and I'm curious to know what he called there?

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    1. I suspect that he was being practical and calling it "playing in a dangerous manner" once the GK got a fingertip on it and the opposing player still had a foot in on the ball.

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    2. Because there was nothing but just a tactical whistle. ;)

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    3. I suspected something like that. But based on what I saw in replays, I disregarded that as the call. I actually thought that he had called "playing in a dangerous manner" on the fallen Iranian player who was kind of sitting there with the ball trapped in between his legs. I half expected to see Cunha bring the ball out to the top of goal box and restart with an IFK in favor of Spain.

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    4. I think it's an intelligent magic trick 😂

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    5. At first I'd think the same, but the way that the defending player was down, he had no ability or option to stand up or do anything, and was not actively trying to "trap" the ball under himself either.

      Either way, I think that it was the best option to take by the match official.

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    6. So at that point it's the referee's duty to ensure the safety and physical well being of the fallen player who is unable to get up. Because technically, none of the Spanish players did anything wrong.

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    7. In fact, there is room for discussion about a potential penalty for Spain: Iranian defender handled the ball a few times while on the ground. Deliberate or undeliberate as he didn't see it? That's where the discussion begins.

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    8. Undeliberate! There the discussion finished.

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    9. should have been IFK for Spain.

      no handball, although, his second handling had intent.

      tho smart decision by ref coming out. managing the proper call might have been a nightmare.

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  23. Incorrect additional time...not enough owing to substitutions and VAR review.

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    1. absolutely the worst time mgmt of any official Ive seen in quite some time at a professional level.

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  24. Free kick and Iranian wall only 6m away from the ball, accepted by Cunha !???

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  25. And what about advantage in 92’?!

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  26. Shocking throw-in execution there...

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    1. Lacked the arm and core strenght to properly execute a flip throw. The idea was there but the body was not. :D

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  27. Did you see that throw-in at the end? 😂😂

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    1. This one? hahaha. https://streamja.com/6WMb

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    2. I cannot believe that he was really doing this :D

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    3. Cunha was so annoyed :D

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  28. All in all no crucial mistakes in a challenging 2nd half after easy 1st one. But I did not like his style and specially the aggressive approach - at least 2 YC missing
    Much talk and warning instead of consequence. Bad average for me. I do not see him in the knock out phase.

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    1. But I'd dare to say that this is exactly what the Ref Comm wants. Controlled Chaos. Matches that are played on the edge but that never boil over. All while keeping the cards in the pocket as much as possible.

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    2. use everything in your toolbox before you resort to cards.

      cards are the easy way out.

      but i think he had a couple opportunities that needed carding to establish little tighter dissent line and maybe time wasting.

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    3. I have the feeling that dissent and diving will not warrant cautions at this World Cup as per the directives and instructions giver to the referee's by the Referee Committee.

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  29. Interesting regarding the disallowed goal, the Iranian player seems to have handled the ball towards his scoring teammate in offside position.

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    1. You mean... to himself?

      IRN #6 had the ball hit him in the arm, and then stepped back and shot the ball into the goal.

      Same guy :)

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    2. Hèhè, do I appear that dumb on this blog ;p No, it was the player transfering the ball to IRN#6. It looked like a header, but I’m pretty sure it was the hand. I’ll try to find the right picture.

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    3. Was also mentioned and shown in post-match analysis in Germany, so I support DutchRed
      So actually a missed handball by Cunha (higher priority than offside, because it is a direct FK), but obviously not an important miss.
      I wonder, whether VAR could and should have pointed that out.

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    4. Was't shown here at all, and on the 4th or 5th re-viewing -- I see what you mean. Very subtle, hard to catch...

      Most interesting... :)

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    5. This is the clip:

      https://vimeo.com/276116297

      As Philipp rightly states, no big issue in terms of the overall outcome, but still interesting for analysing purposes I think. If it was a handling indeed, what, if any, action could VAR have been taken?

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  30. Cunha was lucky as was Spain with that goal. All the potential problems went away as soon as Spain scored (and as Iran didn't). Amazing call by AR2.

    But my point still stands. I don't know how FIFA will assess this performance, because IMO they are truly the ones to blame with the "no easy" YC policy. OK with some fouls at the beginning in which a firm warning is enough. But unsporting behaviour should not be accepted in any way. Make that simulations (Cristiano Ronaldo this afternoon), dissent (many players in many matches, even Iran (!) and Spain tonight) or delaying restart of play. That is something a firm warning won't solve as we have already seen. Only play circumstances or bookings will change that unlawful behaviour.

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  31. Some missed fouls and yellow cards, additional time couldn't make up for the interruptions caused by substitutions and VAR review. Still, passable performance. Let's see if this is enough for him to be given a KO stage match. Chances are he'll not make it but we never know.

    Morocco are out but then all to play for in this group. POR-IRN will be a heated clash.

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  32. Looking at MD3 in Group B:
    ESP-MAR: Spain "just" needs to win, even a draw might be sufficient, Morocco already out: I think, this could be a good second game for Shukralla
    IRN-POR: Portugal "just" needs a draw, but Iran probably will fight hard against that. I assume a South American referee here, maybe Caceres.

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    1. Hopefully we don't have the misfortune of seeing Roldan in Iran v Portugal... Cáceres and even Ricci/Pitana might be possible there!

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    2. I would place Ricci in POR-IRN. It'll be a very hot duel. Then, I agree with Philipp. Shukralla in SPA-MOR.

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    3. Portugal vs Iran should have Pitana or Brych.

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  33. I don't see Cunha in KO stage. He should have performed better in this second game, he has many names ahead...
    However, FIFA will be still content that crucial mistakes didn't happen, it this can be enough in order to be satisfied.
    Maybe we can say that today, in Geiger and Cunha games, referees performance were neither so good nor so bad. But in my opinion many things to be reviewed about disciplinary control.

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    1. I didn't see Portugal v Morocco and one reader here wrote about Geiger putting up a masterclass and all that so I ended up thinking that he might have put in the best performance of the tournament :D Then I read DrMr's comments and then watched some extended highlights to find out that it was at most an expected level performance!

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    2. Soham, if you're talking about me...I said Geiger delivered a masterpiece of control (didn't say it was perfect) in the most challenging game so far. And I keep on saying exactly the same. With other referees, it'd have been the chaos with Morocco ending the game with 9 or 10 players on the pitch. Let's imagine your pick (Mohammed) in that match...well better not say anything else :)

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    3. Ending with 9 or 10 players for Morocco isn't anything wrong as long as referee sends off someone in accordance with LOTG... Whether favourite or not is a different question but never incorrect!!

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    4. On Mohammed : I'm still not convinced about his appointment to France v Peru and it just doesn't fill me with confidence reading his name beside an important UEFA team v CONMEBOL team match... I just hope I am wrong and I wish he can make us Asians proud at the World stage!

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    5. The difference between a good and a great referee is the ability to understand the play, the emotions of the players, preserving the game itself. I mean, the combination of LOTG and common sense. A referee who can't keep his cool would have succumbed to the hectic pace of POR-MOR, the most challenging game up to this point in the tourney. It was super intense from the word go till the very end. Most officials would have sent off two, three players and an exciting match would have been ruined. This is the point.

      As to Mohammed, I think it is a rather risky choice as nothing is decided in that group, plus Peru are a feisty side, which calls for an experienced manager of the game, like Geiger, Rizzoli or Skomina.

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    6. I didn't watch Geiger's game, so I can't judge about his player management (although I read here that there were lot of protests and that he wasn't accepted well). But what I saw on TV tonight is that he missed PK four Morocco - it was obvious foul, and missed advantage for Portugal, when Ronaldo would have very good opportunity to score. Also, I saw non punishable handling, when Geiger correctly rejected penalty appeals. Based on all of this (what I saw and read here) it is hard for me to say that he was that good.

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    7. My view is that Portugal v Morocco was in no way the "most challenging" match of this tournament with such poor quality of dross football!

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    8. Soham, it's clear you didn't watch the whole match. It was a very exciting one with plenty of uncertainty and drama until the very end. Plus, Morocco's unparalleled aggressive behavior towards Portuguese players and the referee did make the match enormously challenging and demanding. Up to this point, it's been the most challenging game hands down. I've watched all the matches so far and there's no other game coming close to this one in terms of level of difficulty for the ref. Can you identify another one with such intensity? Geiger did a very good job in controlling the heated affair and preserving the integrity of the game and the competition.

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    9. Teo, actually I don't know which incidents you're referring to. There are no clear fouls inside the penalty area whatsoever. If you're mentioning Fonte's challenge on Koutaib, well, Fonte hits the Moroccan after the action is finished, so he did not hinder his opponent's movement. Then, Ronaldo being in a very good position to score? Did it really happen? Link please.

      Given how the match unfolded, it was a very solid display from Geiger.

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  34. Tonight we saw the first performance that wasn't a "modern" style of refereeeing, in my opinion.

    Actually I quite liked the variation, I think his furious verbal warnings largely reached their targets, and he still had a good relationship with the players- Cunha gained their respect.

    I think it was a conscious decision by the Uruguayan to change his approach from FRA-AUS, and I think it is easy to ignore how 'combustable' this match was, and largely Cunha handled it well.

    I cannot imagine this style succeeding in CL, and I rarely saw this style otherwise than in Jose Argoté et al in CONMEBOL. But this is WC, and apparently it can work there.

    The problem was his card selection tonight, but overall the match was solved without bigger problems I think.

    Overall decent / good performance IMO.

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  35. VIDEOS

    02' - strong body-check
    https://streamable.com/vpb5l

    04' - referee plays an advantage after late challenge and then warns the player
    https://streamable.com/rhv9c

    08' - referee warns Sergio Ramos to avoid problems in the next phase of game
    https://streamable.com/jmons

    12' - no card for late stamp and hectic approach against dissent
    https://streamable.com/9k0o3

    14' - fourth official deals with coach in a calm and friendly manner
    https://streamable.com/dybci

    15' - referee wags finger at player
    https://streamable.com/kse6b

    16' - positioning problem
    https://streamable.com/euqfc

    19' - referee waits for VAR confirmation regarding undeliberate handling in the penalty area
    https://streamable.com/qej8t

    23' - late cynical trip
    https://streamable.com/sn3kp

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    1. 33' - referee waves play-on after a tackle without contact; careless-reckless or simulation? hectic approach against mobbing player
      https://streamable.com/8oucz

      39' - Diego Costa provokes IRN GK who exaggerates contact
      https://streamable.com/gew8o

      42' - hectic and aggressive approach towards fouled (stamp) player
      https://streamable.com/9r925

      45+3' - neither YC nor warning for late challenge
      https://streamable.com/wtra8

      61' - referee falls on player's simulation
      https://streamable.com/l37j0

      76' - scissor tackle not sanctioned with YC
      https://streamable.com/1c55z

      79' - YC for late challenge
      https://streamable.com/glhbv

      90+2' - YC for cynical trip but missed chance to play an advantage
      https://streamable.com/21peq

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