World Cup 2018: Top 3 Video Assistant Referee decisions

Referees have in the past been guilty of making wrong decisions in matches. Even the elite level match officials are human too and have been prone to errors. Some of the notable errors include - missing hand ball incidents, sending off the wrong players, incorrect penalty calls and not spotting off the ball incidents.

To address some of these issues, world football governing body FIFA introduced the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology at the 2018 World Cup to help referees make correct calls.

After much debate, the technology was eventually used in the tournament. On one end, it helped majority of referees in making the right decision. On the other, there arose debates on issues of bias towards certain teams.

Just where did the match referee draw the line? This experimental football development at the World Cup looks like it is here to stay. In Russia VAR influenced many of the record 22 penalties awarded.

These three key incidents had the referee take a second look before making an informed decision.

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#3 Griezmann penalty vs Australia

Grizou! - Griezmann fouled against Australia

On June 16 2018 France played Australia in their opening Group C match at Kazan Arena, Russia. This match made World Cup history as it was the first time the VAR was used at a World Cup tournament.

The moment of truth was in the 58th minute. Paul Pogba played in a sumptuous through ball to Antoine Griezmann. The striker controlled the ball before being slightly clipped by Josh Risdon from the back.

The centre referee had initially waved for play to continue for about a minute before checking the VAR. Griezmann benefited from one of the top innovations in modern football by slotting home the resultant penalty. France eventually won 2-1 to get their campaign off to a bright start

#2 Aspas goal vs Morocco

Aspas scored a cheeky goal as Spain salvaged a 2-2 draw

Spain alongside Portugal were the clear favourites to advance from Group B. However, the going got tough for the giants as they struggled to convincingly beat Morocco and Iran in their group matches.

In fact, Spain was less than 10 minutes away from elimination when they faced Morocco in their final group match on June 20 2018 at the Kaliningrad Stadium.

After a 1-1 scoreline at halftime, Youssef En-Nesyri powered home a bullet header from a corner to give Morocco a shock lead in the 81st minute.

As things stood, Spain would be eliminated from the competition. However they benefited from a VAR decision to salvage a crucial point and avoid the embarrassment of an early exit.

With virtually the last chance of the match, substitute Iago Aspas diverted Isco's low cross into the net.

There were calls for offside by Moroccan players with the referee initially disallowing the goal. After reviewing the VAR, he overturned the decision and the goal stood. The result enabled Spain to top the group and qualify for the last 16.

#1 Perisic handball vs France

French players plead with the referee to give them a penalty after Perisic handled

The 2018 World Cup final played last Sunday at the Luzhniki Stadium pit strong favourites France against surprise contenders Croatia. More pressure was placed on the match officials to deliver a flawless match given the extra pair of eyes that the VAR brought.

The Croatians were on the front foot early in this match given that fatigue would come into play later against a very youthful and energetic French side.

The French had taken an 18th minute lead through Mario Mandzukic's headed own goal. Even after a fluid Ivan Perisic response ten minutes later, the Croats were overtaken again due to video technology.

Griezmann swung in a corner in the 34th minute and Perisic handled it with virtually no reaction time. The referee pointed to the spot after reviewing the VAR. Griezmann converted the penalty as France switched gears in their 4-2 win to lift the trophy.