Mixed reactions have accompanied the introduction of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) across various leagues in Europe with some calling for the complete abolishment of the system.
Chelsea Manager, Antonio Conte, could not understand why referee Graham Scott and VAR Mike Jones did not award Willian what he and many other experts thought was a clear penalty insisting the centre “referee should have been told to watch video.”
But that one incident pales in comparison to Germany where poor application, delays, and technical problems have led to 47% of players wanting to abolish VAR.
However, the view in Italy has been more positive.
Was introducing VAR too soon?
Both Germany and Italy introduced VAR across top leagues this season, and the results have been mixed.
There appears to be a willingness to embrace the technology, but as German football expert Raphael Honigstein said: “The reason the players don’t like it is because the way it’s been implemented.”
Despite what it called “thorough” tests last term, there have been embarrassing episodes where VAR has not worked, and have not been able to use lines across the pitch during replays to check offside decisions.
One major concern is the delay and time the VAR takes before drawing the attention of the centre referee to an incident.
One example came in Borussia Dortmund’s 2-1 win over Augsburg where Dortmund full-back Lukasz Piszczek appealed for a penalty following a set-piece, but it was not until Augsburg had a won a corner at the other end that the incident was signaled for review.
Even in instances when the VAR intervened, it has failed to deliver satisfactory decision.
In October, Freiburg’s Caglar Soyuncu was sent off after 12 minutes for a handball during his team’s 3-0 defeat by Stuttgart.
The Freiburg coach Christian Streich called it a “scandal” with the referee admitting after the game that “there were arguments for both red and yellow cards”.
Germany’s VAR chief relieved of his position
The situation in Germany has not been helped by a controversy surrounding VAR project manager Hellmut Krug, who at the start of the season said “nobody will have reason to complain” about refereeing decisions.
He was removed from his position in October after German newspaper, Bild, claimed he had influenced the VAR who reviewed two penalty decisions in the 1-1 draw between his hometown club Schalke and Wolfsburg.
Although Krug denied having any influence, he was removed from his position days later and replaced by Lutz Michael Frohlich.
Taufig Khalil, a German commentator, says under Frohlich’s regime, Bundesliga referees have been sent away to a winter training camp in Majorca to come up with better guidelines for using VAR in the second half of the season.
“They’ve been told that it has to be a very special situation to use VAR and they must be over at the review area within 30 seconds and make a decision within 45 seconds,” he said.
“Previously, it was taking up to two minutes to make a decision and this is totally disastrous for the players and the fans.”
Is Serie A mastering the system?
Italy appears to have more positive reactions towards the VAR, as its use has been a source of pride for a league aiming to prove it is a modernizer and considering its referees among the best in Europe, says Italian football expert James Horncastle.
Rather than trigger VAR reviews for minor incidents, Italian referees have developed an approach to use it for “clear and obvious errors” – a strategy which the Premier League is trying to adopt.
“The use of VAR can almost be divided into three parts for the first half of the season,” said Horncastle.
“At first, it was like the referees had a new toy, and they used it excessively. After the two international breaks in September and October, they started using it less and seemed to strike the right balance, and towards the end, some club owners have been saying that it hasn’t been used enough.”
The Italian Football Federation and the Italian Referees’ Association held a recent class, showing footage of incidents to managers and the media, including the audio track between the referee and VAR, to improve understanding on how they come to a decision.
“They said that of 1,078 VAR decisions made in the first half of the season, 60 corrections were made by the VAR with 49 of those being the right decision.”
“So only 11 mistakes were made using VAR from 1,078 decisions, which equates to 1%,” Horncastle added.
Are there any controversies in the Serie A?
Despite the smooth run of the VAR in Italy, there are still some controversies especially in the Coppa Italia earlier this month when Juventus beat Torino 2-0 following a controversial goal from Mario Mandzukic.
Referee Daniele Doveri was invited to review the goal after the VAR spotted a foul in the build-up but after reviewing the footage, he did not spot any infringement and sent off Torino boss Sinisa Mihajlovic for his protests. Doveri was suspended for two games owing to his error.
Meanwhile, Mihajlovic was sacked the following day.
More blatantly, Sampdoria midfielder, Lucas Torreira, used his hands to stop a cross against Sassuolo in December but avoided conceding a penalty and a red card because a technician could not provide the VAR with the right angle soon enough.
“There have been teething problems, but as Inter boss Luciano Spalletti has said, when he watches football from other leagues it feels like something is missing. There is no going back.
“Fans have reacted well so far because they feel it has offered a greater sense of justice, which – given the history of Italian football – is important,” said Horncastle. “
