Are you in favour of VAR in football?

Are you in favour of VAR in the Premier League?


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VAR isn't going to be right all the time but it definitely helps in getting most of the decisions right.
 
VAR isn't going to be right all the time but it definitely helps in getting most of the decisions right.
This is spot on

The problem is that far too many people are expecting perfection, which is very naive, it was never going to be that however if it can reduce absolute howlers (which it has done) then it's been a success
 
Wolves manager Gary O'Neil has said bad refereeing decisions are affecting "reputations" and "livelihoods" after his team were on the wrong end of video assistant referee calls in Monday's 3-2 loss at Fulham.

O'Neil said referee Michael Salisbury admitted the decision to award the first of two penalties against his side was an error, and believes four big decisions went against Wolves.

"Maybe tonight has finally turned me against VAR," O'Neil told Sky Sports.

"The impact that you are having on my reputation, and the club and people's livelihoods is massive. We should be able to talk about the game and not decisions, but unfortunately we can't.

"I think it is a really complex [issue]. I have always been for VAR but I think it is causing problems at the moment. I think VAR has cost us there."


 
VAR is a must for the transparent results these days but the problem arises when you have pedestrian tv referees to operate them.
 
Overall positive but mistakes are inevitable. Should allow each manager a challenge on anything they want and lots of issues would be reduced
 
With so many complaints. Move to 3 challenges a game. Which the managers must undertake with a minute of the incident
 
Mark Clattenburg: Ex-Premier League official says lack of trust in VAR could drive referees away

Former Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg is concerned that referees could leave the game as players lose faith in officials because of inconsistencies around the use of VAR.

Clattenburg officiated in the Premier League from 2004-2017 before leaving to take up an opportunity in Saudi Arabia.

VAR was introduced to the Premier League in 2019-20, after he had left.

"The problem you've got now is that the players now don't trust the system," Clattenburg told BBC Radio 5 Live.

"I think sometimes referees don't make a decision on the field because they know the technology should put the decision correct.

"But then you've got the argument, is VAR putting the decisions correct most weeks? Yes, it does sometimes, sometimes it doesn't.

"So what it's doing is that it creates a tension between the players. And the players are so highly strung because it's a results-driven sport that they then vent the anger and dissent on to the referee."

Arsenal called for "urgent" action on refereeing standards and backed manager Mikel Arteta after the Spaniard was highly critical of VAR when a goal scored by Newcastle's Anthony Gordon was allowed to stand in a 1-0 win against the Gunners in November.

That was one of many controversial VAR incidents this season in the Premier League and the Professional Game Match Officials Ltd (PGMOL) drafted in pilots and air traffic controllers to help England's top referees in October.

"[Referees] need the authority to do the job in a safe environment. If not, many referees are going to leave the game and without referees unfortunately we are not going to get a game of football in," said Clattenburg, who was chosen to referee the finals of the European Championship and the Champions League in 2016.

"I never, ever had a problem with dissent on the pitch because most of the time players used to respect the referee's decision - probably prior to VAR. I think VAR has created a bit more tension between the players because they don't know if they are going to get the decision or not."




 
Mark Clattenburg: Ex-Premier League official says lack of trust in VAR could drive referees away

Mark Clattenburg officiated his final Premier League game in April 2017 when Leicester beat West Brom
Former Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg is concerned that referees could leave the game as players lose faith in officials because of inconsistencies around the use of VAR.

Clattenburg officiated in the Premier League from 2004-2017 before leaving to take up an opportunity in Saudi Arabia.

VAR was introduced to the Premier League in 2019-20, after he had left.

"The problem you've got now is that the players now don't trust the system," Clattenburg told BBC Radio 5 Live.

"I think sometimes referees don't make a decision on the field because they know the technology should put the decision correct.

"But then you've got the argument, is VAR putting the decisions correct most weeks? Yes, it does sometimes, sometimes it doesn't.

Source : BBC Sports
 
It’s a joke – Vincent Kompany ‘shocked’ by decision to allow Luton equalizer

Vincent Kompany fumed over the decision to allow Luton’s controversial stoppage-time equaliser as Burnley were denied a crucial three points in a 1-1 draw against their relegation rivals at Turf Moor.

Carlton Morris headed into an empty net after Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford was blocked by Elijah Adebayo as he tried to claim Alfie Doughty’s cross, but referee Tony Harrington was unmoved and VAR Peter Bankes upheld the goal following a lengthy check.

After Zeki Amdouni’s 36th-minute goal, Burnley had been moments away from celebrating a win that would have put them a point behind Luton and within touching distance of safety, but instead it was the Hatters who moved level on points with 17th-placed Everton.

“It’s a joke, a joke,” the Burnley boss said. “I will start by saying 100 per cent respect and credit to Luton, they’re a terrific outfit, what they do as a club, the players, managers, they deserve whatever is coming to them, a really good club.

“In that phase I’ve just got to defend my team, my club. I don’t understand how we can go through this phase and those events and not come to the conclusion it’s a foul.

“The striker, good luck to him, his first look is at the goalkeeper, he has a look and takes a couple of steps back and backs into him, clears a way for his colleague, then has a look at the referee to see if he gets away with it. The ball goes in, none of the Luton players celebrate, nobody.”

JJ Watt, Burnley co-owner, described the decision to allow the goal to stand as “truly disgraceful.”

The former NFL star wrote on X: “I’m new to this ownership thing, so if I get fined by the Premier League, so be it…

“This is as blatant and obvious of a foul as you could have.

“To miss this on the field AND miss this on VAR is truly disgraceful.”

Kompany also pointed to a series of controversial decisions that have gone against his side this season.

“For those that where there for Aston Villa, Bournemouth, Forest, how many times is it going to keep happening? A couple of lines in the newspaper and on we go. Consequences? Zero,” he said.

“Maybe we get a bit on one of the specialist things where they explain the referee decision but we won’t spend too much time on it because we need to talk about Manchester United and Liverpool. And we move on…

“It’s against my nature because I would like to congratulate Luton and tell my players what we have to do to improve. I’m shocked.

“I’m disappointed but if you know me tomorrow the only people I will blame is ourselves, what can we do better? But hopefully it will balance out and then we’ll get a lot of angry managers from the opposition when it does.”

Luton boss Rob Edwards admitted he would have been disappointed to have been on Burnley’s end of the decision, but did his best to argue there had been no foul.

“Obviously I’m really pleased to get a point,” he said. “In the end that’s nothing less than we deserved. We were excellent. We dominated large spells of the game. In the first half we dominated and looked a threat. In the second half we blocked things up a bit more made it difficult to get behind…

“We showed a lot of control without hurting them but we kept going, the team doesn’t give in and we found a way, whatever way it was.

“It’s difficult. VAR is there to show if a decision is blatantly wrong and I don’t think it is blatantly wrong. But I can understand their frustration. There is contact there with James Trafford but if it hadn’t have been given I would have been frustrated because it was pretty minimal.”
 
Nottingham Forest have been informed by the referees' organisation that the video assistant referee did not have the power to rule out Brentford's disputed equaliser on Saturday.

Ivan Toney moved the ball for his free-kick, which made it 1-1, wiping away referee Darren England's vanishing foam as the official lined up the wall.

Referees' body Professional Game Match Officials Limited told Forest VAR has no authority to intervene on restarts.

Brentford went on to win the match 3-2.

The VAR protocol set by the International Football Association Board (Ifab), which oversees the game's rules, says VAR has no authority to intervene on restarts, which England relayed to Forest staff.

"We have received a response from the incident, it is clear that the law says VAR cannot do anything about ball displacement," Santo said.

"That is something they should look at because it changes the reality of the game. But at the same time, we also have responsibility because we should have said something and avoided the free-kick to be taken.

"Too bad that the referee didn't spot it or the linesman. The referee should have seen it because there is a mark and there is clear ball displacement. It is finished, we move forward."


BBC
 

Belgian Pro League: Anderlecht v Genk replayed after VAR penalty error​

A Belgian Pro League match between Anderlecht and Genk will be replayed in full because of an error made by the video assistant referee.

The incident occurred in Genk's 2-1 defeat by Anderlecht at Lotto Park on 22 December when Yira Sor scored a rebound from a missed penalty.

VAR disallowed the goal because Genk's Sor encroached in the area but ignored encroachment by two Anderlecht players.

A Genk appeal based on the rules being "misapplied" by VAR was upheld.

Law 14.3 of the International Football Association Board states that if there is encroachment by both a defending and attacking player, the penalty kick should be retaken regardless of whether the kick is scored or not.

Genk said in a statement that the Disciplinary Council for Professional Football declared itself "competent to rule on the matter" which "overturned the earlier decision of the Professional Referee Department not to replay the match".

The statement added that the "council then followed Genk's argument that the match officials misapplied the rules at the penalty phase in question".

A date for the match to be replayed has not yet been agreed. Genk are fifth in Belgium's top flight, while record 34-times champions Anderlecht sit second.

In October, the Premier League refused to consider a replay after Liverpool's controversial defeat by Tottenham.

On that occasion VAR wrongly failed to overturn an on-field decision to rule out a Luis Diaz goal for offside because of "significant human error".

Source: BBC
 
VAR: In-stadium experience poor for fans - Premier League chief football officer

Video assistant referee decisions are taking too long and offer a poor in-stadium experience, a senior Premier League official says.

Chief football officer Tony Scholes feels VAR is largely positive addition to the Premier League.

He said that the number of correct decisions being made has increased from 82% in the period before it was introduced in 2019 to 96% now.

But he acknowledges "clearly everything in the world of VAR is not perfect".

The two areas of specific concern are the time taken to reach decisions and the experience of fans.

Although football's rule making body Ifab has extended the trial of stadium announcements by referees - where they confirm what decisions have been made - there are no plans for real-time audio to be released in the manner of international cricket or rugby.

Scholes feels it will eventually come but, for now, the Premier League can do nothing.



 
A huge decision in a clash between two title rivals but the chief of referees says match officials made the correct call.

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What is VAR, how does it work and what are the biggest problems?​


Wolves manager Gary O’Neil proclaimed: “What is the point in VAR?” His side felt aggrieved after yet more decisions proved vital in defeat at Fulham. Newcastle boss Eddie Howe labelled a penalty against his own club in stoppage time against Paris Saint-Germain “a poor decision” which “looks completely different” in a slowed-down replay to officials watching on monitors.

The current situations come after an increase in the use of technology in football over the past few years but none seems to create as much heated debate and questioning as that of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR).

By and large, it is felt that minor and visible calls are improved across the course of the season with on-pitch referees getting extra help. However, there have been several high-profile incidents of late that have led to clubs, or personnel within them, complaining about the eventual decision or decision-making process, with another recent one coming in the Champions League.

Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag felt aggrieved that a number of calls went against them in their 4-3 defeat to FC Copenhagen, including a decision to send off Marcus Rashford for serious foul play.

But the other side of the debate is that - without their being absolute, specific lines on what is and isn’t a foul, where a decision should or shouldn’t be made and so on - the bar for where VAR intervenes and decides on disallowing inicidents (or not) appears far higher in the Premier League than in European competition.

It is widely felt on these shores that the penalty against Newcastle for PSG would not have been given in England, nor would Jarrell Quansah’s late goal for Liverpool against Toulouse have been chalked off for a handball against Alexis Mac Allister much earlier in build-up play. But neither of these instances occurred in the Premier League, and referees in Europe - under the Uefa banner - have different takes and different levels of interventions.

Here’s everything on VAR you need to know, including the latest causes for complaint against it.

What has gone wrong?

A lot, Newcastle felt aggrieved that a penalty was awarded for handball after a VAR review having not been given during open play, in the final minute of injury time in their 1-1 draw at PSG.

Earlier in the competition, Man United complained about Rashford’s red card, given out for stepping across and onto the foot and shin of an opponent. Ten Hag insisted his side had seen three “very debatable” penalties go against them in four games and called his forward’s sending off “very harsh”.

In domestic football, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta complained over “unacceptable” errors from on-pitch and VAR officials as his team lost to Newcastle, while Wolves boss O’Neil continues to feel unfairly treated by the use of the technology.

Earlier in the season he labelled a penalty decision given against his team and upheld by VAR as “scandalous” - also against Newcastle. VAR sent referee Michael Salisbury to the screen to award a penalty after Joao Gomes brought Harry Wilson down in the box, and Willian scored his second spot kick of the game to seal all three points for Fulham. O’Neil highlighted the decisions involving the late penalty, Carlos Vinicius’ alleged headbutt on Max Kilman and why Tim Ream did not receive a second yellow for a foul on Hwang Hee-Chan, while the Whites’ first penalty, awarded for a foul by Nelson Semedo on Tom Cairney, was also contentious. To note, VAR would never have intervened on Ream, as they only get involved for direct red card offences, not second yellows.

Ange Postecoglou suggested recently that clubs have to shoulder part of the blame for long stoppages for VAR, saying: “Some of it is self inflicted because if we come out every week complaining about decisions that is what will happen, every decision gets forensically checked and we will be sitting around for a long time in every game trying to figure out what is going on.”

However, it must be noted that the vast majority of these are subjective opinions and where Arteta sees fault, another manager, supporter or, indeed, official may see justification in decision.

One incident which was not subjective, but instead a quite clear mistake, came with Luis Diaz’s goal for Liverpool against Tottenham being ruled out for offside and then allowed to stay disallowed, despite the VAR officials running their processes and showing the forward was onside. The “significant human error” came as a result of the official, Darren England, appearing to forget that offside rather than a goal had been awarded in the first place.

To another extreme, Millie Bright criticised the fact there was no VAR in the first edition of the Women’s Nations League, after a clearly offside goal was allowed to stand against England which would have been simple to rule out.

Further clear VAR errors which PGMOL have had to apologise for include no penalty being awarded to Wolves against Man United after Andre Onana clattered Sasa Kalajdzic, a Brentford goal against Arsenal not being checked properly with no offside lines drawn and a West Ham late equaliser being ruled out for a foul, where none was apparent.

What has gone right?

In truth, a lot.

It’s overlooked when three or four calls are spot-on, when one causes serious complaint or at least is a subjective call which a majority seem to disagree with.

As an example, in the incident-packed Tottenham vs Chelsea fixture, several goals were correctly ruled out for offside through use - or checking - of VAR and the penalty awarded which saw Cristian Romero sent off was also a result of VAR intervention.

Generally speaking, these calls that are widely accepted as correct do not get highlighted, partially because the technology exists for that very reason: it’s expected to help officials make the right calls with a second look.

That doesn’t mean they don’t occur, though. The Premier League reported that 82 per cent of decisions were correct in the season before VAR was introduced, rising to 94 per cent being correct in 2019/20.

What is the process for VAR checks?

From the Premier League website: VAR will be used only for “clear and obvious errors” or “serious missed incidents” in four match-changing situations: goals; penalty decisions; direct red-card incidents; and mistaken identity.

When any of those match situations occur or potentially occur, VAR is constantly rewatching and monitoring match footage from the hub at Stockley Park.

If there is a decision to be made, the VAR or Assistant VAR (AVAR) will relay to the referee that play should be halted while checks are made, before recommending either an overturn, a pitchside check of the monitor for the ref or a continuation of play with the on-pitch original decision.

The video officials have until the ball goes dead to inform the referee that a check is underway if play is already ongoing.

The referee can then either check the monitor or accept the VAR recommendation. Upon reviewing the pitchside monitor, they may then stick with their own initial assessment or overturn the original, before communicating their new decision to the crowd.

What have PGMOL said?

The refereeing chief of Professional Game Match Officials Limited, Howard Webb, took over the role last year to improve the standard of officiating in the English game and to help oversee a smoother use of technology.

PGMOL confirmed to the League Managers’ Association “they are actively looking at how best to incorporate VARs into match-day refereeing teams, to ensure the dynamic between on-field referee and VAR is conducive to producing positive outcomes.”

After the Diaz incident, the organisation “acknowledge[d] a significant human error occurred” and brought in additional processes to ensure no repeat happened. They also released the audio of that incident, an “unusual step” according to Webb, “to show everybody what was very quickly pretty apparent to us, a human error and loss of concentration.”

 
What don't like about VAR, it can overturn very marginal decisions when maybe benefit of doubt should go to referee. Its supposed to for 'clear and obvious'.

I also don't like it when you think a goal has been scored, everyone is joyous and celebrating then it gets chopped off. It takes away that spontaneity of the moment.
 
The VAR decision against Coventry sucked all off the life and joy out of would have been a fairytale ending.
 
Forest offered chance to listen to VAR audio

Nottingham Forest will be offered the chance to privately hear VAR audio from three penalty claims in their match against Everton last Sunday.

On Monday, the club called for the audio between video assistant referee Stuart Attwell and on-field official Anthony Taylor to be released publicly.

Forest were furious after three penalty appeals were rejected in the 2-0 defeat at Goodison Park, which kept them just a point above the Premier League relegation zone.

The rulings sparked an angry post on the club's X account, where Forest said they were "considering their options" over "extremely poor" refereeing decisions.

It is understood that refereeing body Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) will give the club the opportunity to hear the audio in private, as it would with any other club making a similar request.

No decision has yet been taken on whether this audio will feature in the next edition of 'Match Officials Mic'd Up', a Premier League Productions programme that analyses VAR decisions from previous games, which will air next Tuesday evening.

In a statement released on Monday afternoon, Forest said of the audio: "The club has requested this be shared for three key match incidents - Ashley Young's challenge on Giovanni Reyna (24th minute), Ashley Young's handball (44th minute) and Ashley Young's challenge on Callum Hudson-Odoi (56th minute).

"We firmly advocate for the broader football community and supporters to have access to the audio and transcript for full transparency, ensuring the integrity of our sport is upheld."

It follows Liverpool's similar request when Luis Diaz's goal was incorrectly disallowed in their 2-1 defeat at Tottenham in September.

PGMOL believes that was an extreme case as it was a factual error, with the officials mistakenly stating an incorrect on-field decision around Diaz being offside should stand, when it should have been overturned.

Source: BBC
 

Uefa Board calls for improvement in VAR consistency​

The Uefa Football Board says VAR needs to become more "consistent, transparent and understandable" for players, fans and coaches.

The board, which is led by former players and elite-level coaches, met in Nyon, Switzerland on Monday.

It said that VAR should be used as a tool to help referees, and that "its interventions should not be perceived as a negative judgement on referees themselves".

"It is clear that not everything on the pitch may be seen by the referee," the statement added.

Uefa's comments come after a controversial weekend for video assistant referees (VAR) in the Premier League.

Nottingham Forest have asked for the audio between officials from Sunday’s defeat at Everton be released publicly, after they criticised VAR decisions on social media.

The Premier League said it was "extremely disappointed" by Forest's social media post but it has led to more debate surrounding the technology.

Coventry City also had a late goal ruled out for a marginal offside by VAR during their epic FA Cup semi-final against Manchester United on Sunday.

Everton manager Sean Dyche said the process is "a good thing for the outcomes of games" but added that he understood some frustrations.

"The idea of VAR was to tidy up as many decisions as possible, and statistically it's shown that it is doing that," said Dyche.

"I appreciate that it can get in the way of things from a supporter's point of view, but there has to be some form of getting these decisions right."

Wolverhampton Wanderers manager Gary O'Neil added: “The technology doesn’t seem to have cleared things up as we hoped it would.

"I’ve always thought VAR would be a big benefit to the game but maybe it hasn’t been as much of a benefit as much as I expected."

The board also called for an improvement in player behaviour towards referees and officials, and to reduce instances of diving and time-wasting.

"The behaviour of players and coaches towards match officials in several recent instances has become a critical issue and does not contribute positively to the good image of the game," the statement said.

"The Board concluded that it is important for coaches to set the example for their teams and for the mobbing of officials to be eliminated."

They also called for a player-led campaign to discourage "situations of players faking injuries to gain an unfair advantage, waste time and disrupt the flow of the game".

The meeting was chaired by Uefa football advisor and former Portugal player Luis Figo, and other representatives included Rafael Benitez, Rio Ferdinand, Jurgen Klinsmann and Patrick Vieira.

Source: BBC
 

Nuno feels vindicated after Forest's VAR anger​


Nuno Espirito Santo says he and Nottingham Forest feel vindicated after their furious complaints following the controversial defeat at Everton.

Forest had three penalty claims rejected in the 2-0 defeat, although the Key Match Incidents panel and referees’ chief Howard Webb have confirmed one of the decisions was wrong.

The club posted an angry statement on X - seen over 45m times - minutes after the final whistle last month claiming they told referees body the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) that the game's video assistant referee (VAR) Stuart Attwell was allegedly a fan of relegation rivals Luton.

Nuno also said the officials had "bad" games and confirmed he has responded to the Football Association’s request for observations after his post-match comments.

The FA asked for observations from defender Neco Williams and the club’s referee analyst Mark Clattenburg as well, but with Webb admitting one of the decisions - Ashley Young’s tackle on Callum Hudson-Odoi - should have been a penalty, Nuno believes their protests were justified.

“It’s nice when you have someone, an expert, saying they [the referees) got it wrong and what you said and saw was right," said Nuno, speaking before Saturday’s trip to Sheffield United with Forest a point above the relegation zone.

"It makes you feel more comfortable but it doesn’t give you back what happened.”

Nuno insisted he "still believes" all three decisions should have resulted in spot-kicks.

He added: "The PGMOL clearly said the third one was a penalty but unfortunately they [the officials on the day] got it wrong. It’s happened before when the panel has decided and said it was the other way round. We cannot be bothered by that.

“I always try to be respectful, I try to understand how hard the work of the referee is but this year it’s difficult. There are too many situations happening. I felt it was impossible to control the emotions and that’s why I’ve become so vocal.”

Nuno is now hoping to avoid a ban after submitting his response to the FA.

He said: “I read it, I agreed and I signed it. We are still waiting. Hopefully I don’t get punished and I can be on the touchline.”

Forest are expected to be charged by the FA and the Premier League for their outburst after the loss.

This week it was revealed the Key Match Incident Panel unanimously agreed Forest should have been given a penalty when Young brought down Hudson-Odoi in the 55th minute of their match at Goodison Park on 21 April.

The club called for the audio between video assistant referee Attwell and on-field official Anthony Taylor to be released publicly, with the PGMOL giving them the chance to listen to it privately.

Speaking on the Sky Sports' Mic'd Up programme on Tuesday, Webb said he would have welcomed a VAR intervention over the Young tackle.

Nuno has also called on Forest’s situation in the league to be resolved as they continue to wait for their appeal verdict.

They are yet to hear if their appeal against a four-point penalty for breaching profit and sustainability rules has been successful.

It was held last Wednesday in front of an independent commission, meaning the Premier League does not have control of the timescale.

Unlike the independent commission which heard Forest’s initial case, there is no seven-day timeframe for it to be resolved, but it will be finalised before the end of the season.

“It’s a mess. They had time enough. It’s a mess,” said Nuno, who has previously described the situation in similar terms. “It’s very difficult not only for us but for the league. It’s very hard to be in this situation.

“We’ve been dealing with this situation for a while, we have been expecting it to come sooner so we know exactly how many points we have. Do we have 30, 29, 28, 27? We need it as fast as possible.”

 
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