Three takeaways from Real Madrid’s 2-1 win over Al Jazira in the Club World Cup

Real Madrid was unfortunate not to score in the first half of the Club World Cup semifinal and found themselves trailing 1-0 to Al Jazira. A great second half effort and some help from VAR were enough to see Los Blancos through to the final. Here are three takeaways from the match.

VAR giveth and taketh away

Had it not been for the video assistant review system (VAR), this would have been a completely different match. In the first FIFA Club World Cup featuring VAR, head referee Sandro Ricci had to consult the team of officials watching the game in a control room on several occasions.

Three times to be exact.

The first two came in the first half, both on would be Real Madrid goals. The first VAR review came after Karim Benzema headed a cross from the wing into the back of the net past Al Jazira keeper Ali Khaseif. However, there was no goal awarded after it was determined Cristiano Ronaldo shoved an Al Jazira player to the ground in front of goal before Benzema’s header.

The second use of VAR was on a potential Casemiro goal that would have put Real up 1-0. After consulting the booth, Ricci disallowed the goal because Karim Benzema was in an offside position when the pass came in from Isco on the wing.

Despite two calls going against them in the first half, Real Madrid was happy VAR was a part of the game as they would have gone down 2-0 early in the second half had it not been for an official review. It was very close as the side from the UAE broke in on goals with two attackers and zero Real Madrid defenders back. The goal was ruled offside and the score remained 1-0 just five minutes into the second half.

After this game-changing call, Al Jazira could not muster another attack of any danger as Los Blancos managed a great comeback.