Luton Town – You Cannot Have It Both Ways..
Yesterday, despite my previous criticism of there being too much football on television, I sat, all day, watching the glut of live FA Cup ties.
I must admit that with so many being broadcast, it was a chore I always didn’t finish, almost abandoning the late kick-off between Brighton and Chelsea.
But I persevered and late into the evening I drew a conclusion I’d like to share.
Now we’re back in the EFL Championship, one of the things I don’t miss is VAR.
In the FA Cup, this season, VAR isn’t used until the 5th round, up until that milestone, we’ve reverted back to football as we knew it, the referee and his two assistants making the decisions and those decisions being stuck to.
For me, it made the game more free-flowing, there was no three-five minute wait for a goal to be declared legitimate, fans celebrated instantly, and it was a joy to watch.
But not everybody was happy, I’ll explain.
Several of the games saw goals given that, I believe VAR would have disallowed, see below:
Manchester United v Leicester City – the last gasp stoppage time winner, for Manchester United, clearly saw Harry Maguire and numerous of his teammates stood in an offside decision when the free-kick was taken.
Brighton v Chelsea – the build-up to the goal that decided the tie, clearly saw two instances of handball by Tariq Lamptey before the goal was scored.
Birmingham City v Newcastle United – the first Newcastle goal, scored by Joe Willock, surely the whole of the ball was not over the line.
Now perhaps Goal Line Technology should have ruled that one out but, I believe, it wasn’t in us yesterday, please feel free to correct me if I’m wrong.
But what brought a smile to my face was the raft of supporters bemoaning the fact their team’s destiny in the FA Cup this year was influenced by some poor decisions by the officials, even more so in the last instance when the assistant who awarded the goal, deeming the ball to have crossed the line, was at least four yards behind the line of play.
Are these supporters the very same who when they see a goal for their own team’s given by VAR praise the technology?
I’d be interested to know, after the events of the weekend, what your feelings on VAR are now?
Has it highlighted how much it is needed?
Has it highlighted how poor some of the officiating has become since its introduction?
Two questions I’d love to hear your views on simply drop a few lines in the comment facility beneath this article.
