It very much depends on what you want VAR to be used for. For sure, VAR has the ability to review a corner, if the authorities wanted VAR to be used for that. And maybe you are indeed an advocate for VAR to be used more. My suspicion though is that the vast majority would be furious at more VAR use, given that so many don't want it used at all.
Yes, I want VAR to be binned, but I’d also expect, despite your earlier post, an AR to spot at least one of the 4 Chelsea players who were offside when the kick was taken.
Having done a lot of AR, I can tell you that's a really hard call to make. You need about 3 pairs of eyes in that situation.
Yes I appreciate that. Perhaps, as has been mentioned elsewhere, we need more officials with specific roles. An AR for each quadrant of the pitch would make sense.
The extra officials behind the goal were completely useless when FIFA and UEFA had them. The stewards were more use than they were. If they'd actually worked, VAR probably wouldn't even exist.
That isn’t what I said. 4 AR’s, each patrolling one half of the line on each side of the pitch would make spotting offsides easier, and would also have the bonus of taking decisions on throw ins away from the ref, who often is in no better position to call it than the lino who could be 50 yards away.
But if they were of zero assistance in making a penalty call, I wouldn't be having much faith in them being of much assistance elsewhere. "He's taken out a player right in front of you." Sorry, play on. "He's a yard offside." Sorry, play on.
I've pointed this out since early last season. Same as they don't check corners if they're scored from.
Not necessarily Tom. I think the ARs are now keeping their flags down so much to see it leads to a goal, and this case in mind, I think they just let the play go on and gave a corner yesterday. I think it us about not making a decision they live to regret, so easier to keep it down, and let VAR deal with it if it went in. I thought yesterday was lazy officiating and we are seeing more of it.
I always wonder what would happen if a player is clearly offside, runs into the box, the keeper comes out and one (or both) badly hurt in the collision? It’s something which could have been avoided and, yet, the ARs are told not to flag EVEN if a player is yards offside! Yesterday, there was one offside which wasn’t flagged for ages ..... I was wondering if it was ever going to get called!
Funny you should say that. My wife, who would be the first to admit that her undestanding of football is rather low, made the same point watching the game with me yesterday. Now I trust the FA's understanding of the game is greater than that of my wife, but this becomes a common sense point. It's absurd. A player offside should be flagged straight away and the game stopped. I am struggling to see the logic of continuing..
I called it in real time from my sofa aided by beer googles half the Chelsea team were offside by some distance.
Well isn’t that then what all ARs do in that case!!! Seriously, it wasn’t a hard one to call live, and considering the AR is standing directly in line with our CBS, I’d suggest it shouldn’t be so hard for them live in the stadium to spot the basic thing they are trained and paid to do. This isn’t like VAR and interpreting the laws etc, we are talking the basic function of a lines person.
I would suggest you try it before saying it isn't difficult. You have a dozen or so bodies moving around, plus you've got to keep an eye on the free kick taker. It's much easier to call offsides in open play.
You know what - i think you get a hard time on this thread due to you being a ref, to which I applaud you for. Maybe it would be harder for me as ive only ever done it at amateur level, but I cant agree at all with you on this one, and respect you see it different. My main reason for disagreeing is largely they are trained to do this, literally all the time. it is actually their job. I get some of the calls are fairly tight, and i have sympathy for those ones. But the one we are talking about yesterday there were 4 in a line, all off by up to maybe a foot (I’ll accept 20cms ) That for me should be easy for someone standing right in front of that line, who has training all the time and is their job.