Explained: Why Vinicius Jr's strike was unexpectedly chalked off against Switzerland

19:38 SAST 2022/11/28

Vinicius Junior thought he had fired Brazil into a 1-0 lead against Switzerland in the second half of their second World Cup group stage fixture.

Vini Jr scored in 64th minute
Slotted in from Casemiro pass
Ruled out by VAR for offside

WHAT HAPPENED? In a tense affair, Vinicius Junior thought he had bagged his first goal at the 2022 World Cup, running beyond Switzerland's defence and smartly threading the ball beyond Yann Sommer just after the hour mark. However, following a review from VAR, the goal was ruled out and the score remained 0-0.

The VAR image of the Brazil offside call pic.twitter.com/AQWOE2YWNU
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) November 28, 2022

WHY WASN'T IT GIVEN? It turns out that despite Brazil pulling Switzerland's defence apart, Richarlison was returning from an offside position before getting a touch on the ball in the build-up. As a result, it was chalked off.

IN THREE PHOTOS:

Explained: Why Vinicius Jr's strike was unexpectedly chalked off against Switzerland

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