Judge slams VAR's "cognitive deficiency" in Flamengo v Fluminense penalty | OneFootball

Bruno Henrique was kicked by Thiago Silva, but referee Davi Lacerda was not called by VAR

The 2-1 defeat to Fluminense last Wednesday (19) was marked by a clear penalty not awarded in favor of Flamengo. Thus, referee Paulo Caravina, from the Mato Grosso Federation, criticized the VAR's decision on the play involving Bruno Henrique.

— Davi Lacerda officiated the match between Fluminense and Flamengo, and the poor Wagner Reway was on VAR (…) Notice that Thiago Silva does not have possession of the ball. After intercepting the cross, he is looking for the ball -, analyzes Caravina, who adds:

— And when he finds the ball, he decides to give it a big kick. But since Bruno Henrique is faster than Thiago Silva, he occupied the space first and is then kicked by the defender. There is no other interpretation here than that of a penalty -, highlighted the referee in a video.

What did the referee and VAR decide?

On the field, Davi Lacerda only awarded a corner to Flamengo when the score was 2-0 for Fluminense. A converted penalty could have changed the course of the match, but Wagner Reway on VAR did not call it, as he considered that “Bruno Henrique exaggerated.”

“Reway said that Thiago Silva did not kick Bruno Henrique. I have already said that the cognitive deficiency of the referees in Brazil is the issue. It's not enough to just professionalize. It's absurd not to call it on the field, absurd for VAR not to recommend it,” stated Caravina in another publication about the same incident.

Will the refereeing be punished?

According to journalist Paulo Vinícius Coelho, the CBF will not punish Lacerda for the incident. This is because, in the entity's view, the case is interpretative. Thus, for those who say that Flamengo is helped by refereeing, the referee will continue in the Brasileirão.

What is Flamengo's next match?

Hoping for a better VAR, Flamengo will face Red Bull Bragantino this Saturday (22). The match kicks off at 9:30 PM (Brasília time) at Maracanã, for the 35th round of the Brasileirão.

Then, Coluna do Fla will bring all the details of the match through YouTube, the website, and social media. However, the Flamengo vs. Bragantino match is a Premiere (pay-per-view) broadcast.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.