In the 2019 Champions League final, Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah scored a penalty against Tottenham Hotspur. However, VAR intervened, reviewing a potential handball by Liverpool’s Sadio Mané. The Referee, reviewed the footage using VAR and he saw that the ball had accidentally brushed Mané’s arm. The goal stood, and Liverpool went on to win the title.
Fast-forward to the 2020 Premier League match between Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur. Another incident happened as Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes scored a penalty but a VAR review showed a potential foul by Fernandes on Tottenham’s Eric Dier. The referee scrutinized the replay using VAR and he saw that Fernandes had indeed committed a foul. The penalty was overturned and Tottenham was awarded a free kick.
In both instances, some might say that the intervention of VAR tried to mirror God’s justice which is fair, impartial and precise.
With fair play as the watch word, the VAR technology was developed to ensure accuracy as much as possible.
There are other instances that VAR doesn’t just help the team that really needs it like in the 2022 World Cup match between France and Argentina. We saw a contentious moment when France’s Ousmane Dembélé was accused of handball and VAR reviewed the incident. It came off that after examining the footage, the ball had unintentionally brushed Dembélé’s arm and play continued.
Just like VAR’s decisions can change the outcome of a match and cut or make someone’s ticket… justice is always about balance. Have a great day.
