VAR - are you a fan?

SELR_addicks said:

Cajetan said:

SELR_addicks said:

I said it once, I've said it a million times. We genuinely have awful standards of refereeing in this country, and the referees union allow bad decisions to go unchecked because how dare you criticise our beautiful referees. 

If a player on the pitch makes an serious error, they get dropped. 

These VAR guys will take a little paid holiday for one week and then be back making errors like nothing has happened. 

Where's the accountability for them to know the laws and do their jobs correctly?

Do you really think there is no accountability? They get assessed each game and the VAR referees have been stood down and publicly slammed. It is their livelihood and professionalism in full public view, hardly a paid holiday...Yes, they made an error, a big one, so did Foden, so did Fernandes. So has every player and manager. And every supporter. We are so lucky to have a punditry profession that is infallible. I wonder if anyone has ever thought about the human element in this case? Have we not learned the tragic costs of media pile ones? 

I am not a referee but am just fed up of the continuous complaints about refereeing. Given the social media fury and attitudes of some players and parents in youth and local football do we wonder why there are not loads of people signing up to be a referee. Why would you? 

This is the typical nonsense spewed when professional referees are held to account. They are paid a handsome amount and this is their job. 

Add in the 'tragic costs of media pile-ons' and you've hit the apologist bingo.

Foden making an error is rightly criticised.

Referees? They have a swarm of former refs coming out to try and explain away the decision, before all having to pivot because the referees union did end up admitting they made a mistake. It makes a mockery of the whole profession. 

Who says they're assessed each game? Where is the transparency about the assessments? 

Cajetan said:

SELR_addicks said:

Cajetan said:

SELR_addicks said:

I said it once, I've said it a million times. We genuinely have awful standards of refereeing in this country, and the referees union allow bad decisions to go unchecked because how dare you criticise our beautiful referees. 

If a player on the pitch makes an serious error, they get dropped. 

These VAR guys will take a little paid holiday for one week and then be back making errors like nothing has happened. 

Where's the accountability for them to know the laws and do their jobs correctly?

Do you really think there is no accountability? They get assessed each game and the VAR referees have been stood down and publicly slammed. It is their livelihood and professionalism in full public view, hardly a paid holiday...Yes, they made an error, a big one, so did Foden, so did Fernandes. So has every player and manager. And every supporter. We are so lucky to have a punditry profession that is infallible. I wonder if anyone has ever thought about the human element in this case? Have we not learned the tragic costs of media pile ones? 

I am not a referee but am just fed up of the continuous complaints about refereeing. Given the social media fury and attitudes of some players and parents in youth and local football do we wonder why there are not loads of people signing up to be a referee. Why would you? 

This is the typical nonsense spewed when professional referees are held to account. They are paid a handsome amount and this is their job. 

Add in the 'tragic costs of media pile-ons' and you've hit the apologist bingo.

Foden making an error is rightly criticised.

Referees? They have a swarm of former refs coming out to try and explain away the decision, before all having to pivot because the referees union did end up admitting they made a mistake. It makes a mockery of the whole profession. 

Who says they're assessed each game? Where is the transparency about the assessments? 

Any basic Google search answers your penultimate question. I am not saying they don't need to be held to account, it is very clear that they are, they get dropped and demoted from the different levels. What I don't like is the relentless pile on. Absolutely hammering a VAR referee for 48 hours seems less than humane for a mistake

The referees we have are clearly the best we have because they have reached the top of the profession through regular assessment of performance. So if we think they aren't great then maybe start looking at why that might be the case. Maybe they aren't paid enough! 

Ross said:

For anyone still thinking that the goal should have stood, here is the full VAR check and Howard Webb's explanation:

https://youtu.be/CUrlkWUpPuQ?is=hkGq77tR9OQY5gFY

Covered End said:

PeterGage said:

Covered End said:

PeterGage said:

Briston_Addick said:

PeterGage said:

My take on the Haaland goal is that if the defender who attempted to block the cross touched the ball, then Haaland was onside. The touch, or lack of it, was inconclusive to me

Was Enzo - the Man City player wearing the Superman cape in the middle of the penalty area, occupying the attention of the Man Utd defender and also in the view of the goalkeeper - interfering with play in your opinion?

Only my opinion, but no. I stand by my posting.

Unbelievable.

The United defender was marking Haaland and left Haaland unmarked to try and stop Enzo from scoring.

It's almost impossible to believe that anyone can honestly say a player is not interfering with play, when they were inches from scoring with a diving header.

Why unbelievable.I didn't give an opinion on the situation.. I merely said that if the wide defender played the ball when attempting to stop the cross, the fact whether or not Haarland was offside, or the other attacker disrupted the goalkeeper by his actions of attempting to head the ball, are irrelevant. The goal would stand. I finished by saying that to me, the touching or otherwise of the ball by the wide defender was not conclusive. That I assumed when watching the game on TV, could have the reason for the decision by VAR 

Howard Webb agrees with me if you watch his video above.

Even if the first defender does brush the ball it makes no difference.

I’m thinking Peter Gage & Chizz should make joint contact with Howard Webb and explain to him where he’s got it wrong.

Off_it said:

PeterGage said:

Chris_from_Sidcup said:

Billy_Mix said:

One of the linos at our game on Saturday, Antrobus, was the assistant VAR at the Manchester derby.
I haven't checked but presumably Antrobus is qualified as a referee at some level but what possible use is a 2nd division linesman supposed to be to the VAR process?
If he was the East Stand yellow flag muppet on Saturday then he clearly doesn't get offside at all.
The Manc derby ref, Oliver, probably didn't have a decent view to make an offside decision, that's the lino's 2nd job on the lino's very short list of stuff they're there to do, ergo Burt or Wood ballsed up.
VAR Donohue inexcusably ballsed up cos he's got replays and a moment or 2 to actually think.
When it's apparent that Donohue is inadequate shouldn't Antrobus stick in his tuppenyworth and raise the glaring issue of Fernandez being yards offside?

All that technical guff about "subjective offside" does mean the offside laws are all to cock.  Refs should have minimal discretion, cos they've proved conclusively down the years that the more brain they have to use the closer to worthless they become.

While we're on Michael Oliver's performance, the red card for Foden is a total no brainer, all wiffling about Foden wasn't malicious blah blah is risible toss.  Foden  flipped out like the petulant toddler he is - red card all day long.
Bruno F provoked him with a sly coward's dig when Foden hit the deck - minimum yellow card for that too.

Did the PGMOL rabble of incompetents and nitwits piss their collective nappies and "even things up" for City, getting offside amnesia as compensation for sending off the spawny faced scally twat?

I'm confident you could pick anyone off this forum and they could quite easily manage VAR in a game. You simply need to know the rules and whether you are a PL level official, or league one or even national league, the rules don't change.

Anyone who knows the rules cannot possibly operate VAR. Rules are for off field activities such as the time clubs hand officials their team sheets etc, etc.

To operate VAR  you need to understand the 17 Laws of the Game which govern on-field actions.

I mean, I guess we shouldn't really expect anything else from a staunch defender of all referees than a shitty pedantic reply like that. Well done.