Former Sweden striker Zlatan Ibrahimović has criticized the decision to disallow Croatia’s late equalizer in their 2-1 loss to Portugal at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Croatia appeared to have forced extra time when Joško Gvardiol scored deep into stoppage time. However, the goal was overturned following a VAR review, which ruled that a slight touch from Igor Matanović in the buildup led to an offside offense.
FIFA later confirmed the decision was based on “Connected Ball Technology,” which detected a faint contact not clearly visible in replays.
Reacting to the incident, Ibrahimovic described the call as unjust, saying the match was “ruined” by VAR. He argued that there was no clear irregularity and questioned the reliability of the technology, insisting that a Portuguese player made the decisive touch.
Portugal advanced to the round of 16 following the victory, but the controversial decision has sparked widespread debate over the use of technology and offside rules in football.
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