Gary O’Neil has questioned if VAR has a long-term future in the Premier League, claiming that game entertainment is’reducing’.
The future of VAR has been called into question in recent weeks following a string of egregious blunders by officials.
Wolves appear to have been hit the hardest by this, with the most recent incident occurring last weekend when Max Kilman’s equaliser was called off.
O’Neil questioned the judgment, and West Ham striker Michail Antonio agreed, claiming that VAR’should be withdrawn from the league’.
The Wolves manager has now chimed in on the controversy as fans continue to attack the system.
Gary O’Neil continues to have doubts about VAR
Following last weekend’s decision, the Wolves fanbase was in uproar. VAR has always had its critics among Molineux fans, but it is now at its peak.
Chants of ‘Boring’ continue to reverberate around the stadium every time it comes into play, even when the game is stopped for nearly five minutes at times.
Now, after nearly a week of deliberation on another questionable decision, O’Neil has questioned whether football should return to ‘life without VAR’.
Journalist Liam Keen stated, “You can feel it nationally; there’s a lot of unhappiness with some of the judgments. It hasn’t been all awful, but everyone wants to see the standard improve.”
The manager then stated, “I believed VAR would surely assist. However, I believe that on-field judgments can either improve or revert to their previous levels. I am not sure we have enhanced the entertaining aspect.”
Nathan Judah also noted that O’Neil stated that the Championship would be lot more enjoyable without VAR. This, combined with the fact that just a few decisions were correct, prompted the manager to further question the system.
Gary O’Neil is spot-on
The Premier League’s entertainment value has certainly fallen. With VAR constantly scrutinizing everything, no matchday spectator can be certain if a goal will stand.
Play can be paused for minutes at a time, with no one in the stadium knowing what is being checked.
Furthermore, the other team is in the same situation, as seen in Wolves vs West Ham. David Moyes must have thought he was the happiest man in the world at Molineux when Kilman’s goal was overturned, a decision he disagreed with.
Then you glance down at the EFL, where each fan has the assurance that they may celebrate their goal. This is without the dread of officials verifying for minutes on end to ensure that every detail is accurate hundreds of miles away from the stadium, which they still get wrong every week.
If matchday supporters were asked whether they would keep or scrap VAR, the vast majority would undoubtedly vote to remove it. If football is genuinely ‘for the fans’, surely that is all that matters in making this decision.
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