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Should Ron Vlaar's penalty have counted against Argentina?

Was the ball still in play? Did it cross the line? Where was that goal-line technology graphic that plagued us during the group stages?

Updated 5pm

CRASHING OUT OF the World Cup is tough to take, clinging on to some sense of injustice that might (just maybe) fuel a desire to try and believe again for players and fans alike.

You see it time and again from ‘wronged’ teams who felt they deserved victory: Luis Garcia’s ‘ghost goal’ against Chelsea, France in the 2011 Rugby World Cup final, Frank Lampard against Germany in 2010…

Okay, some complaints have more merit than others. So, take another look at the pivotal penalty from Wednesday night’s shootout; Ron Vlaar’s miss.

We know it was saved, but what happened then?

kundabuffer / YouTube

FIFA’S Law 14 covers penalty kicks, and says the goal can be awarded after “the ball touches either or both of the goalposts and/or the crossbar and/or the goalkeeper.”

Cheers, FIFA, but we knew that.

The key line in the rules are that “the referee decides when a penalty has been completed” and when the ball has run its course.

In this angle it’s clear that Vlaar thinks he might have a case for the spot-kick  to count.

Ramzi Tanani / YouTube

However, the above video may also negate his argument if the ball does in fact touch the defender’s shoulder on the way back from Sergio Romero’s save.

If you assume that the ball did not touch Vlaar after Romero’s save, the issue becomes; ‘did the ball cross the line?’
https://vine.co/v/MxBLtbXX5P0

It’s agonisingly close.

TheScore.ie contacted FIFA today and they have confirmed that referee Cuneyt Cakir was still supported by the GoalControl technology that showed up on your TV screens time and again during the group stage, and it was active.

So, if the ball had been live, Cakir wonld have been notified if it cross the line in full.

However, from everything we’ve watched above, we think the ball is dead and the miss counts when it bounces up to clip the Aston Villa man in the shoulder.

This one will always be funnier anyway.

Quixotico / YouTube

Originally published 11am

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