A REFEREE disallowed a goal at a football game after holding a VAR review on a FAN’S PHONE.
VAR is a controversial tool at the best of times – and that’s with the use of high-quality cameras and a whole team at Stockley Park.
But this maverick referee paid no mind to that as he held his own impromptu review with nothing but a pitchside fan’s phone for assistance.
In a viral video, said to take place at a Serbian lower league game, a fan brandishes his mobile to help the referee come to a decision on whether to allow a goal.
The referee took the phone and looked at the footage for over half a minute before deciding to rule out the goal.
This decision sent the team wearing blue wheeling away in celebration of the ruling in their favour.
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Fans were quick to draw comparisons to the actual VAR process used typically in the top professional leagues and competitions.
One user described it as: “VAR on budget.”
A second user said: “Better than VAR,” while another echoed this saying: “So even Sunday league Serbia is better than the EPL VAR!”
However, some eagle-eyed viewers also picked up on the referee never actually returning the phone to the fan who gave it to him.
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A user asked: “Is he going to return his phone?”
Another said: “the referee took his phone,” and followed it up with a crying emoji.
VAR officiating came under intense scrutiny after some very controversial calls during the last set of Premier League fixtures.
The Premier League and PGMOL (the referees’ governing body) declared they would review the decisions made at Stamford Bridge and St James’ Park that weekend.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
