Following the controversy surrounding the match between Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham striker Michail Antonio recently made history by becoming the first player in the Premier League to openly criticize VAR. The event has reopened the discussion over the contentious technology.
Last weekend, a goal by Liverpool’s Luis Diaz was wrongly disallowed for offside, and VAR officials Darren England and Dan Cook did nothing to stop it. They thought Simon Hooper, the field referee, had already declared the goal. The error, which was roundly criticized, has diminished the value of VAR.
On The Footballer’s Football Podcast, Antonio expressed his opinions and emphasized that the purpose of the introduction of VAR was to lessen post-match arguments and human errors. However, these debates continue despite the development of technology. Antonio thinks that acknowledging mistakes made by others as
of the game is crucial, and it might be preferable to go back to the days before VAR.VAR should be eliminated, Michail Antonio declared via The Mirror. That is what I believe. This is not the first time I’ve said it, and it won’t be the last. VAR was implemented as a result of the discussions that took place after each game.
We introduced technology because there were too many human mistakes being made, which would reduce the number of arguments. However, if you look at the statistics, the arguments are still being made.
