Wayne Rooney: Mistakes by referees in the FA Cup highlight excessive dependence on VAR
Wayne Rooney asserts that mistakes made during the Aston Villa versus Newcastle FA Cup match over the weekend highlight an excessive dependence on VAR.
Referee Chris Kavanagh, along with assistants Gary Beswick and Nick Greenhalgh, faced criticism for their officiating during the FA Cup fourth-round match at Villa Park.
They overlooked Tammy Abraham’s offside position leading to Villa’s first goal, failed to penalize a shin-high tackle by Villa defender Lucas Digne on Newcastle’s Jacob Murphy that could have resulted in a direct red card, and awarded a free-kick for a handball by Digne despite him being clearly within the penalty area at that moment.
Rooney characterized the handball decision as “one of the worst calls he had ever witnessed,” while serving as a pundit for the BBC’s live coverage of the match on Saturday evening.
In a subsequent episode of the Wayne Rooney Show podcast, he remarked: “I believe there is an over-reliance on VAR.
“Unfortunately, the officials have become accustomed to it, and when they have received assistance from it, it has sometimes saved them from making tough calls, or they are waiting for it to guide their decisions.
“Without VAR, they must make the call themselves, and they are likely used to keeping the flag down, which led to the errors yesterday.
“No one is disputing that it is an extremely challenging role, and I think that is where referees require some support, which they have been receiving from VAR, and now they do not have that.”
Rooney compared the handball mistake to the failure to award goals to Frank Lampard and Pedro Mendes in 2010 and 2005, respectively, when the ball had clearly crossed the goal line.
“I believe the linesman was in an excellent position to see if the referee missed it,” he added on the podcast.
“I found it to be a very unusual decision, and it is an error that I am sure the officials will regret. However, it was a significant mistake, in my opinion.”
Former Premier League referee Graham Scott, who appeared as a guest on the podcast, expressed that it was not accurate to claim referees were relying on VAR to avoid making decisions.
“I work closely with them, and I know these individuals; they are not like that,” he stated.
“That is not how they think or how their processes function. I spent half of my career with VAR and half without it, the reverse being true, of course, starting without it.
“When I was in the Premier League, I frequently returned to the Championship. Thus, you are in and out, and your processes essentially remain consistent.”
Sunderland coach Regis Le Bris also mentioned that Kavanagh had acknowledged to him that he erred by not awarding the Black Cats a penalty against Liverpool on February 11.
Kavanagh and his assistants will find out at 4pm on Monday whether they have been assigned Premier League matches for the upcoming weekend.
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VAR will be implemented in the FA Cup starting from the fifth round.
Newcastle manager Eddie Howe commented after Saturday’s game: “There is an argument to be made that when VAR is present, there is always a thought of, ‘well, I won’t give that, but let’s check it.’
“I think this can lead to decision-making that may not be as sharp as it typically would be, so there might be a difference there.”
Top-flight referees are strongly encouraged to trust their on-field judgments.
The Premier League has the lowest rate of VAR interventions among major European leagues and operates on the principle that unless a subjective decision is evidently and clearly incorrect, the referee’s on-field decision should prevail.
