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Howard Webb, the head of Pro Ref officiating, provided explanations regarding the mistakes made in the Manchester derby held on Sunday at Old Trafford. He announced that the VAR mistake in validating Erling Haaland's goal was due to 'tunnel vision'. Haaland's goal was initially ruled out for offside in the second half, but after a VAR review, the goal was confirmed.
Details of the VAR mistake
However, Webb admitted that Haaland's goal should have been disallowed because VAR failed to properly assess the impact of Enzo Fernandez, Haaland's teammate, who was attempting to play the ball from an offside position. Webb said on the Match Officials Mic’d Up program: "I was really disappointed with this outcome. We all feel that way. No one feels the pain more than the referees themselves. They take pride in their work, and now that they have encountered this issue, they feel bad about it."
Read more: Haaland's controversial goal, City's victory with 10 men in the Manchester derby
Consequences of the VAR mistake
VAR is designed as a tool to assist officiating in reviewing and correcting clear and obvious errors during a match. However, it seems that this technology has become a bitter topic in football circles. Webb confirmed that the VAR officials, Matt Dunnehoo and assistant VAR, Blake Anthrobus, will not be allowed to officiate until after the international break. He also stated that he contacted Manchester United and informed them of the mistake.
Webb explained the decision-making process, stating that the semi-automated offside system quickly confirmed that Haaland was not in an offside position, but VAR overly focused on the striker's position and failed to correctly analyze Fernandez's impact. He added: "At that moment, he suffers from tunnel vision and does not properly assess other aspects of the offside."
This VAR mistake faced severe criticism from current and former players of Manchester United, including Wayne Rooney, following their 1-0 defeat against their rivals. Rooney described the use of VAR as 'terrible', and football experts deemed this technology as 'overly dominant' in decision-making. Currently, Manchester United will face Brighton in the League Cup on Wednesday and then travel to Fulham on Sunday.
Read more: India became the champion of the Women's Asian Cup but did not accept the prize · Hot conflict in the Manchester derby: Bruno Fernandes and Erling Haaland in the spotlight
