Trust Statement - VAR at Anfield
The FA Cup tie at Anfield on Saturday 7th January 2023 was effectively decided by a linesman error and VAR technology failure. How does this occur at a stadium regularly hosting Champions League matches and professionally trained match officials?
Match-going supporters have been consistently told that all the negative aspects of VAR are outweighed by the fact that the key decisions are reviewed, and corrected if they turn out to be wrong. At Anfield on Saturday, VAR supposedly was unable to review the camera angles that would have proved the linesman had put his flag up in ‘error’.
We await a statement from the FA or PGMOL, explaining exactly what happened but also offering travelling Wolves supporters an apology. Already inconvenienced by the match being scheduled for a Saturday night, travelling supporters were left bewildered in a stadium that inexplicably does not have big screens for in-match replays (along with Old Trafford, Anfield is one of only two Premier League stadiums without screens suitable for replays). Only by messaging family and friends watching on TV were those in the stadium able to get an idea as to what was going on; not only is this wrong but it undermines the credibility of the game.
The Trust will be raising the following questions:
Why did the linesman raise his flag for an offside that he clearly could not see through the mass of players in the penalty area?
Why did the referee appear to direct the lineman to raise his flag, when both officials knew that VAR would check the goal?
Why did VAR claim that there were no camera angles to verify the decision when other stadium ‘tactical’ cameras could see the whole picture?
If we are to believe that it was simply a technology failure, why have the FA and PGMOL not been 100% transparent and released transcripts of the conversations between the officials?
Wolves 1877 Trust has contacted the Football Supporters’ Association VAR Working Group, and they in turn will raise this issue at the next joint meeting of the FSA and PGMOL.
We note both Everton and Chelsea received prompt public apologies for supposed VAR errors; we hope a club of Wolves stature receives the same respect.
The accusation of corruption, at the highest level, is not something that the Trust would want to be associated with, the deafening silence from the FA and PGMOL does nothing to quell the anger of supporters.