体坛英语新闻：Iran's int'l referee praises VAR helpful in World Cup

TEHRAN, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Iran's international soccer referee Alireza Faghani on Sunday defended the use of Video Assistant Referee (VAR) in 2018 FIFA World Cup.

"VAR minimizes refereeing mistakes during the competitions. VAR is not complete but it will undoubtedly improve in the future," Faghani was quoted as saying by Tehran Times on Sunday.

"In 2009, France striker Thierry Henry intentionally handled the ball to set up William Gallas' decisive goal against the Republic of Ireland in World Cup play-off in Paris. France went through thanks to a refereeing error and Ireland were eliminated with a sense of injustice," he said.

"In the match between Iran and Portugal, the referee (Enrique Caceres) awarded Cristiano Ronaldo a penalty following a VAR intervention. And also Iran was awarded a penalty in added time," the Iranian referee said.

Faghani, along with Reza Sokhandan and Mohammad Mansouri who are also Iranian, took charge of 2018 World Cup third-place match between Belgium and England.