Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Sport
Sam Brookes

Why Argentina World Cup penalty was awarded by VAR before shock Lionel Messi miss

  • Argentina were awarded a penalty inside the opening eight minutes of their World Cup clash against Austria on Monday.
  • The referee initially waved away Argentina’s penalty appeal, as Lautaro Martinez went down following a challenge by two Austria defenders.
  • Replays showed that one of the Austria defenders appeared to get the ball, but the other one seemed to make contact with Martinez’s ankle, forcing him to go down.
  • Following a lengthy VAR review, the referee was advised to check his pitchside monitor, and he subsequently awarded a penalty against the player who failed to get the ball.
  • Lionel Messi had the chance to become the all-time World Cup leading goalscorer, but he shockingly put his penalty wide of the target to keep the scoreline at 0-0.

IN FULL

Argentina v Austria LIVE: Lionel Messi misses early penalty with World Cup scoring record on the line

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.