VAR

[BullensRoad]

Stephen Warnock and Sue Smith I think.

That's her name. she's cool.

 

[degsy]

Totally agree. It doesn’t even matter if it’s a screamer from 30 yards with no one round them as we don’t know if there has been a minuscule shirt tug in the tackle before the assist. I thought it was a blatant pen yesterday. And watching the highlights last night, I was perplexed why it took so long to allow Beto’s goal. It was clearly onside to me. The whole feeling yesterday was one of over fussiness and re-refereeing. The whole buzz of scoring is totally gone for me. I instantly think something will rule it out. I’m not one for conspiracies at all but there felt a definite “narrative” among VAR that they were looking to rule things out rather than in. Personally, I would only have VAR for offsides. Anything else is subjective. That ref was 10 yards away, bang in the heat and flow of the game and gave his decision as a penalty. That should have been that.

Why is the opinion of someone else overriding his?

Conspiracy or Cockup?

IMO, they appear to be in breach of FIFA rules, which state - gist - the referee is assisted by the video ASSISTANT! (clue's in the name)

But we can all see that the VAR tail is blatantly wagging the Referee dog.

The real question is WHY? what do 'they' gain ?

Then we come to CLEAR and OBVIOUS Error... this used to mean 2 or 3 howlers a season.
We're getting 2 or 3 a week sometimes.

They've had 2, 3, 4? attempts to tweak it - and made it worse.

Nobody seems to be able to fix it and the powers that be are highly unlikely to scrap it
So where do we go from here?

 

[The Littlest Yobo]

Conspiracy or Cockup?

IMO, they appear to be in breach of FIFA rules, which state - gist - the referee is assisted by the video ASSISTANT! (clue's in the name)

But we can all see that the VAR tail is blatantly wagging the Referee dog.

The real question is WHY? what do 'they' gain ?

Then we come to CLEAR and OBVIOUS Error... this used to mean 2 or 3 howlers a season.
We're getting 2 or 3 a week sometimes.

They've had 2, 3, 4? attempts to tweak it - and made it worse.

Nobody seems to be able to fix it and the powers that be are highly unlikely to scrap it
So where do we go from here?

I’ve absolutely no idea. As I say, I’d scrap it for all but offsides. I’m all for using technology and I’m no Luddite but it has to work. Goalline technology works as it is a definitive yes/no if the ball crossed the line. Automated offside decision making is the same. Anything else is just one set of humans debating with another human - all subjective. You still end up with a decision which is argued and debated so why add this extra layer of bureaucracy, nit picking, buzz killing forensic analysis which sucks all the joy out of moments which make football unique. Why not just go with the decision made by the on field referee? It’s going to be debated anyway.

 

[lieneverton]

VAR will never be truly automated, as you still have morons using it. As evidenced every single week.

 

[hallamblue]

True. I think I mean more the automated offside system which we were promised in September but has mysteriously not materialised.

I've got a wild idea. When the ball is played through, if the assistant referee sees an offside, they put their flag up. Then the referee stops the game and awards a free kick to the defending team. I'm surprised nobody's thought of it before.

 

[paultheblue]

For VAR to work there has to be the will to get the correct decision.
As it is the main aim seems to be find an outcome that is in the best interest of the "big two".
Forget about the big six it's Liverpool and Manchester United that sky care about they are there cash cows.
Premier league football is just corrupt.

 

[twoblue]

Chris Sutton says it’s not a pen and it was the correct use of VAR…

This should be enough for everyone to conclude it was a pen as everyone can universally agree that Sutton chats absolute turd

His whole career is about being a WUM

I’ve absolutely no idea. As I say, I’d scrap it for all but offsides. I’m all for using technology and I’m no Luddite but it has to work. Goalline technology works as it is a definitive yes/no if the ball crossed the line. Automated offside decision making is the same. Anything else is just one set of humans debating with another human - all subjective. You still end up with a decision which is argued and debated so why add this extra layer of bureaucracy, nit picking, buzz killing forensic analysis which sucks all the joy out of moments which make football unique. Why not just go with the decision made by the on field referee? It’s going to be debated anyway.

I can even go with clear and obvious errors. But first of all young and maguires feet clash, secondly maguire has a grab of his shirt, thirdly, de ligt has his shirt.
Anyone of those makes clear and obvious irrelevant.

I can’t stomach the penalties that RS seem to get that for far worse.
The defence is always VAR couldn’t see a clear and obvious error.

 

[Caolam]

VAR is a good idea and it is correct that it is used in top level football. VAR is a resource, it is inanimate, it cannot be biased or corrupt. It is the people who are operating the system that corrupt, if we take yesterday’s debacle, the video assistant appears only to show the on field referee two angles which do not show clearly the shirt pulling. It would appear the video assistant has decided on the outcome and only provided the on field referee with the evidence that will give the best chance of achieving that outcome. It could be argued that the on field referee is in charge and should have asked for more angles to be shown but the video assistant is there to assist and should be providing all the evidence.
Furthermore why did the referee need to go to VAR, it wasn’t a clear and obvious error. The Premier League do not need to get rid of VAR but they do need to bring in wholly independent people to run it. Surely it isn’t beyond the organisational skills to bring in teams of officials from different countries, with a footballing pedigree, to oversee the system. Alternate these officials on a weekly basis so that they don’t become tainted.
We can argue that the VAR system impacts on the way referees now referee games but I don’t think that is necessarily a bad thing,
Furthermore, are the officials now operating VAR more corrupt than the referees who were in charge of games prior to it’s introduction or is this just the way it has been for years and it is only the introduction of VAR that has allowed us to go back over their decisions in detail and see what they are doing.
Football fans should be demanding a Public Inquiry into the operation of VAR, appoint a top judge and let him go over the operation of the system and report to government. Football is a massive industry with differing people investing large sums of money into it, surely government has a responsibility to ensure it is fair. Make the Premier League pay for the enquiry, it isn’t a complicated thing and could be completed in the close season, a fair and open scrutiny of the system would be to everyone’s benefit, if it is considered to be fair then we have to accept that and these are just errors, but if it found to be unfair then it can be fixed or if it can’t be fixed it can be abolished.

 

[Amw79]

I've got a wild idea. When the ball is played through, if the assistant referee sees an offside, they put their flag up. Then the referee stops the game and awards a free kick to the defending team. I'm surprised nobody's thought of it before.

Terrible idea.

Far better to let play continue for another minute, let the striker score, then the linesman can put his flag up, then a video assistant can spend 5 minutes looking at replays from different angles, freeze the frame at roughly the point they reckon the ball was played, draw some arbitrary lines on the screen, not tell the crowd what’s happening, then decide his chin probably was offside, THEN award a free kick to the defending team.

Much simpler and more enjoyable for the 40,000 people who’ve spent their hard earned money, and given up their day to go the match.

 

[The Littlest Yobo]

His whole career is about being a WUM

I can even go with clear and obvious errors. But first of all young and maguires feet clash, secondly maguire has a grab of his shirt, thirdly, de ligt has his shirt.
Anyone of those makes clear and obvious irrelevant.

I can’t stomach the penalties that RS seem to get that for far worse.
The defence is always VAR couldn’t see a clear and obvious error.

The “clear and obvious” thing is subjective also. The only other thing that I think may help with that is that VAR should have only 30 seconds to make a decision. If it can’t be done in that timescale, is it truly “clear and obvious”? Instead we get frame by frame analysis like it’s the JFK assassination.

 

[Tipp blue]

There is only 2 ways forward with VAR is managers challenge like NFL, you get 1 per half if you are right and your challenge is accepted then you keep it for another attempt if you are wrong you lose it with a 30 second time limit for replays, the second way is to bin it altogether. If it is taking 3 minutes to allow a clearly onside goal and another 3 to disallow a clear penalty VAR in it's current form is broken.

 

[Paulyefc]

Over the last 2 weeks we've seen 3 VAR decisions last a few minutes on each occasion, against Liverpool, Palace and now yesterday. It's absolutely ridiculous the amount of time they are taking to make decisions. It seems to me that when something goes our way they check it with a fine tooth comb looking for anything.

I know fans of other clubs will feel hard done by , but I genuinely think that us and Wolves are screwed over time and time again.

We really need to kick up a fuss about this because it seems to be blatant now

 

[Ring master]

Over the last 2 weeks we've seen 3 VAR decisions last a few minutes on each occasion, against Liverpool, Palace and now yesterday. It's absolutely ridiculous the amount of time they are taking to make decisions. It seems to me that when something goes our way they check it with a fine tooth comb looking for anything.

I know fans of other clubs will feel hard done by , but I genuinely think that us and Wolves are screwed over time and time again.

We really need to kick up a fuss about this because it seems to be blatant now

And they were all clear incidents that should have took secs, that fans could see. They are over analysing everything way over the top.

 

[NilSatisOptimum]

Conspiracy or Cockup?

IMO, they appear to be in breach of FIFA rules, which state - gist - the referee is assisted by the video ASSISTANT! (clue's in the name)

But we can all see that the VAR tail is blatantly wagging the Referee dog.

The real question is WHY? what do 'they' gain ?

Then we come to CLEAR and OBVIOUS Error... this used to mean 2 or 3 howlers a season.
We're getting 2 or 3 a week sometimes.

They've had 2, 3, 4? attempts to tweak it - and made it worse.

Nobody seems to be able to fix it and the powers that be are highly unlikely to scrap it
So where do we go from here?

EPL cant have one of its biggest assets getting sucked into or near relegation. Droves of TV viewers around the world would switch to other clubs in other leagues. VAR, its working as intended. To balance they will make sure if similar incident happens against Bretford or such like, it will be given.
And of course the howlers creates load of content and clicks which drives revenues in all sort of ways, its win win for balance sheets.

 

[Richard Alex]

Howard Webb will be furious. He's changed it this season so VAR doesn't get involved when it doesn't need to, which is what made yesterday so annoying.

He’s part of the problem though. He needs binning. Refs are worse under his watch. Didn’t think that was possible in fairness. Webb is such an arrogant so and so and was himself a poor official.
Never trust an ex-copper either.