Following another year of dubious decisions throughout the Championship season and opinions on EFL referees at an all-time low – it makes us ask the question, does the second tier need VAR?
There is just one game out of 557 Championship clashes which uses the technology – the playoff final.
If it isn’t used all season, it should not be used in a one-off tie.
There would be arguments for and against the video assistant technology being bought in on a full-time basis and the EFL are in a tricky position as they lose out either way whether it is or is not bought in.
Obviously, it is happening most weeks, in most games, where fans are feeling let down by decisions going against them which ultimately is costing their side valuable points – even more importantly as we approach the business-end of the season.
Just to name a few incidents this season which have been wrong or missed:
Credit: Football Away Days – Facebook
To make matters worse – this is just a few incidents off the top of my head, admittedly there has been hundreds of poor officiating decisions in the Championship and with VAR to assist, these wouldn’t have been missed.
However, there is a general consensus amongst fans that the new technology should be kept away from the second-tier at all costs – especially from newly-relegated clubs.
Undeniably, the use of VAR slows the game down and in recent years has led to added time being upwards of ten minutes due to the amount of time it takes to make a decision.
It also removes the excitement away of scoring a goal in the moment – having to wait five minutes after the ball has gone in the net just to see if the striker’s toenail is offside.
As a Coventry City fan myself, we have not had many encounters with VAR, but the FA Cup semi-final against Manchester United removed any belief I had in the technology after disallowing a winner from 3-0 down in the 122nd minute.
(Credit to the Daily Mail for the image above)
Despite the likelihood of referee’s getting more decisions correct if VAR was introduced, I believe the Championship is a better league without the technology slowing the game down and ruining fan enjoyment and this is what makes it such an incredible league.
However, if the video assistant referee was bought in, it should mean that overall, more decisions are given as what they should be – often VAR isn’t the problem, but the people operating it are.
