VAR heartache for Iran: Why Shoja Khalilzadeh’s late winner is ruled out

On Saturday, Iran suffered heartbreak at Seattle Stadium as a 93rd-minute brilliant strike from Shoja Khalilzadeh was empathetically disallowed by VAR against Egypt. 

Primarily, the VAR decision left the match in a 1-1 draw, successfully sending Egypt to the Round of 32, and leaving Iran’s World Cup fate in jeopardy.

Meanwhile, the stadium exploded when Khalilzadeh smashed the ball home following an unpredictable situation. The veteran defender went shirtless in jubilation, picking up a caution in the process.

Under the official FIFA Law 11, “ the timing of the offside is judged at the first point of contact of the play or touch by a teammate.”

It is crucial to note that when the ball dropped, an Iranian player rose highest in the center of the penalty area to challenge the goalkeeper, getting an essential serial touch that steered the ball smoothly into the six-yard box. 

According to FIFA’s rulebook: A player in an offside position is penalized upon becoming involved in active play by challenging an opponent for the ball or making an obvious action..”

FIFA's Law 11 further demanded that because an offside player obtained a competitive edge by initiating that secondary goal-line chaos; meaning this period of the game was compromised from its very commencement. As a result, the referee had no choice but to rule out Khalilzadeh’s  subsequent low finish.