At 18:00 Beijing time on December 19, the 17th round of the Chinese Super League (championship group), Shandong Taishan and Shanghai Harbor staged a key championship battle. In the first half, referee Zhang Lei made a key penalty, and Shandong Taishan profited.
In the 17th minute, Sun Zhunhao opened a corner kick on the right, Brazilian centre-back Judson's long-range header was on goal, Yan Junling did not save fast enough on the side, and the ball could only fly from his fingertips into the goal. Referee Zhang Lei had no objection to this goal, but VAR thought that Liu Yang was interfering with the goalkeeper in the offside position, so he suggested that Zhang Lei watch the video replay himself.
When VAR intervened, Shandong Taishan fans were estimated to be a little panicked, because they knew that their home team had been receiving "special care" from the referee over the years, and Liu Yang was indeed clearly in an offside position, and the referee did have a reason to judge offside fouls. However, after watching the video replay, referee Zhang Lei upheld the original judgment and confirmed that the goal was valid, and Shandong Taishan fans could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
This game is a key 6-point battle for the championship, and VAR is more cautious and understandable, but this intervention is deliberately doing things in the eyes of Shandong fans. However, referee Zhang Lei still insisted on his own judgment, believing that Liu Yang did not interfere with Yan Junling's save action, and finally awarded a valid goal, and this penalty may directly determine the chinese Super League champion this season.
Before this battle, Shandong Taishan led Shanghai Harbor by 5 points, if Shandong Taishan won, then the point difference between the two sides will be widened to 8 points, and shanghai harbor only 5 rounds of games are left.