Don’t think doing away with VAR is the solution. Then we’ll end up getting decisions like the sterling offside when he was playing for us, which is just as ridiculous as the decisions now. It needs to improve and it can improve. They just need to look up all the football forums for ideas 
2 Likes
The offside thing is really easy to solve. VAR has a look, and if you can’t tell a player is offside within a couple of seconds of looking, just play on. Trying to arbitrate on these tight ones is stupid. I’ve no problem with the Mane one being given offside, as it was clear as soon as I saw the replay. But the Salah one is ridiculous.
With the rest, just put the decision back in the hands of the referee. Let him request VAR assistance and tell them what he wants them to check.
3 Likes
The latter is really important. By looks of it they just get to see the slow motion of the action which might not provide a complete picture.
1 Like
Milly speaking out…
4 Likes
Yeah that’s how I’d do it…Mane one I have no qualms with but the Firmino one last season is the kind of thing the game does not need.
2 Likes
This is the way it works in rugby. And because the referees are miked you know what’s going on.
I’m happy that the the ball was grounded, but can you check he stayed in touch?
It works.
4 Likes
Authority remains with the on field official in this way. They make a decision and the TMO is there to help them, not make decisions for them.
Too often it feels like VAR is making decisions for refs or the act of directing them to the screen is shorthand for “you’ve got that wrong but I don’t want to make you look bad so here’s s chance to change your mind”.
Make the ref make a decision first and then ask for help if he needs it but it’s to confirm or overule. Might actually give the refs an ounce of authority and accountability back.
2 Likes
The VAR knows not just what decision the ref gave but why (e.g. no contact). If you only direct him to look at the monitor on the incidents that you know will show him something that he described to you, then you’d expect the overwhelming majority of them to be over turned.
1 Like
Im not sure what you intended to mean here?
1 Like
The ref is connected to the person in the booth and will basically give a running commentary on what they saw. If the images the VAR sees conflict with that description of events, then that is not a second guessing of a subjective decision, but a “clear and obvious” error, and so those are the calls that get called out.
In this instance, it was likely that the VAR asked him about contact on the Welbeck-Robbo incident and he said he played on as he saw none, thus creating the opening for a review.
2 Likes
5 Likes
VAR officials drawing lines these days…
8 Likes
Aww, that’s so cute 
They’ve tried to implement too many changes in a too short space of time. If they introduced things gradually, then refinements could be made easily. Players could learn to adapt and accept much quicker.
Take cricket for example. They’ve made changes, realized errors, corrected and so on. The process has evolved at a steady pace.
With the reintroduction of crowds soon, the faith in VAR, which should have bought more fairness to the game, has had a negative effect.
The stupid thing is that VAR has actually been tried now in many different leagues and competitions around the world. There really should be some communication and learning from all these vastly different environments and experiences.
If they systematically analyze all the good and bad things from VAR from all over the world, then improvements should be able to be made, rather than what seems to be the haphazard approach they are doing at present.
1 Like
I did not know that was how it worked with Rugby. That is the " clear and obvious " answer. 
2 Likes
Back to European football this week where VAR doesn’t seem to be an issue. Maybe because the people implementing it don’t have an agenda,
7 Likes
But then that 10cm is measured to the mm. Same issue.
2 Likes
It would be a lot better if decisions were decided by the toss of a coin,heads it’s off side and tails it’s not.
4 Likes
Heads and feet would make more sense, that’s the parts of the body they use to score mainly. 
2 Likes