London, Oct 17 Howard Webb, chief refereeing officer at Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), said there has been significant improvement in video assistant referee (VAR) standards in the ongoing Premier League season.
It has been five years since VAR was introduced in the Premier League, yet the system continues to spark considerable debate. According to the Key Match Incidents (KMI) panel, there were 31 instances of incorrect VAR usage during the 2023-24 season.
In June, Premier League clubs voted 19-1 to retain VAR, following a push from Wolverhampton Wanderers to eliminate it. An independent survey commissioned by the league revealed that four out of five fans support keeping VAR in place.
"I don’t think we managed expectations well in terms of VAR. We knew it was always going to be a situation where it was going to do well on those clear situations, the ones where you think, 'that’s clearly wrong on first view'. We're good at spotting those most of the time," the former Premier League referee told the Stick to Football podcast.
"We have this independent panel which has got ex-players on it, and they judge each decision each week, and according to the panel - which is independent from us (PGMOL) - there has only been two VAR errors this season compared to 10 at the same time last year," Webb added.
To enhance transparency, the Premier League has begun explaining VAR decisions through a dedicated social media channel. However, the rollout of semi-automated offside technology (SAOT), initially planned for after the October or November international break, has now been postponed until 2025.
"We’ve been better at hitting the mark but that can change and we’re not going to get complacent, but it’s been better. For me, the biggest thing of all is that it’s been quicker. The average delay last season through VAR was 70 seconds per game and this year it’s 25 seconds. It's way better," said Webb.
"I said to the guys, 'don’t ponder for too long, if you see a situation that jumps off the screen at you then get involved, but if you’re having to think about it too much and analyse it too many times then just say check complete because we’ll leave it with the referee on the field'. That’s why the term, 'referee’s call' is useful," he added.
However, Webb was frustrated after Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes was sent off against Tottenham Hotspur last month and VAR failed to intervene in the decision.
Referee Chris Kavanagh issued a straight red card to Fernandes in the 42nd minute for a late challenge on Tottenham's James Maddison. The Portuguese midfielder seemed to make a studs-up challenge, but replays revealed that he actually made contact with the side of his boot.
VAR officials Peter Bankes and Simon Long did not overturn the decision because they mistakenly believed it did not meet the criteria for an on-field review.
"We released the audio, you can hear the assistant referee - who's got a good view of it - just saying 'that looks awful, 100% red (card) for me'," said Webb.
"From his angle it looked it, because it looks like the studs have gone in. But then there's another angle shown on the replay on Sky Sports. Straight away I've gone 'that'll be an overturn', but it wasn't. I was frustrated that we didn't step in to rectify it because it was clearly wrong in my opinion. He slipped, he tried to trip him but it was the side of the foot and he didn't drive the studs in. If he had then it would have been a red card," he added.
The sent off proved crucial for United as they lost the match 3-0 and Fernandes' red card was overturned on appeal two days later.
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