The debate is about to get hotter, with the Wolves statement wanting VAR to be withdrawn. For our part, we have previously asked members their views and, unsurprisingly, we are split! Where all seem to agree is that the joy is being sucked from the game. Goal celebrations have to go on hold while you watch the referee going through the dreaded VAR check routine; first not heading back to the halfway line; holding his ear to listen to communications from the VAR referee; stepping away and waving back players, signalling he’s concentrating on what’s happening at Stockley Park; holding his position near the edge of the penalty area while the two teams are standing around, ‘scoring’ team lined up for the restart, ‘conceding’ team milling around and hoping for the best.
By the time he signals goal or no goal, we’ve all grown impatient, and if a goal is given, that moment of exhilaration long-since been extinguished.
And the delays over offside and penalties are just as painful. Occasionally they work in your favour, quite often they don’t. And when the reasoning is suspect or contentious (for Arsenal, think Newcastle this season, Brentford last season, forgotten lines or obscured camera views….) you can’t help wondering what the system is achieving.
We’ve debated whether this is really a trial and it would get better – and the stats provided by the PGMOL suggest accuracy has increased this season. But we’ve also argued that a trial shouldn’t be impacting important games. The introduction of the semi-automated offside next season suggests it really is a work in progress and we should be patient. Tell that to teams who have already lost vital points!
Trouble is, I think we all agreed, once the VAR cat was out of the bag, there was no going back. Or is there?
What do you think?
The Wolves statement
