Webb: VAR Had 'Tunnel Vision' on Haaland Winner — SkimNews
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- Howard Webb, Premier League refereeing body Pro Ref's chief refereeing officer, said he was 'really disappointed' that VAR Matt Donohue and assistant Blake Antrobus failed to assess whether Enzo Fernandez was offside during the 60th-minute goal at Old Trafford on Sunday.
- Semi-automated offside technology showed Haaland was just three centimeters onside from Josko Gvardiol's cross, but the VAR team only checked whether Fernandez touched the ball — never whether his central position interfered with play.
- Wayne Rooney called the error 'baffling' on Match of the Day, saying 'anyone who has played the game at any level understands' that Fernandez was in an offside position.
- Donohue and Antrobus will not officiate again until after the international break, and Webb pledged to 'review it, reflect upon it, and try to take the learning forward.'
- Webb backed the 23rd-minute red card shown to Phil Foden for kicking out at Bruno Fernandes, but ruled Fernandes' retaliatory kick was 'more petulant than violent' and warranted only a yellow, since it lacked excessive force or brutality.
- Webb noted that if Foden's dismissal had come via VAR review rather than on-field — as Aston Villa's Joao Gomes did at Brighton last month — Fernandes' yellow-card offence would also have been caught at the pitchside monitor.
Why it matters: The VAR error directly shaped the outcome of a top-flight derby, with Haaland's goal standing as the match winner. With both officials benched through the international break, Pro Ref is publicly acknowledging systemic failures in how its video review team evaluates offside phase play — not just goal-line incidents — raising pressure on refereeing standards heading into a congested fixture period.
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