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      Stats show VAR has HELPED Arsenal in title race despite Gunners fans being left baffled by decisions

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      VAR has appeared to have HELPED Arsenal in their title pursuit – despite fans being left angered by decisions this season. The Gunners have put themselves in a very encouraging position heading into the final few months of the Premier League season.
      Video Assistant Referees (VAR) continues to be a divisive addition to professional footballCredit: Reuters
      Many Arsenal fans feel like their club have not been lucky with VAR – but that has not derailed the Gunners’ brilliant seasonCredit: Richard Pelham / The Sun
      Manchester City have only had one VAR decision go in their favour all seasonCredit: EPA
      Mikel Arteta’s side have a five point lead over Manchester City – and have left every other team in the dust.
      The club are potentially just 12 games away from a first title in almost two decades.
      But anxious fans have become increasingly suspicious of VAR – and that mood went into overdrive last month after Lee Mason’s mistake when Brentford visited the Emirates.
      But new stats from ESPN suggest Arsenal have actually had the rub of the green when it comes to video technology.
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      The club have seen five decisions go their way this season, with only a handful of clubs getting more lucky with VAR interventions.
      Meanwhile, title rivals Man City have only had one VAR decision go their way all season long.
      Only relegation-battling Southampton have had a less good time of it from officials at Stockley Park with the Saints not having a single decision go in their favour so far.
      At the other end of the VAR table, West Ham have benefited the most from controversial refereeing decisions with eight moments going in their favour.
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      West Ham have had the most VAR decisions go in their favour this season
      Fellow Londoners Brentford follow with seven decisions, while Fulham, Liverpool and Newcastle all had six moments go their way thanks to technology.
      While Arsenal have enjoyed some favourable interventions, data suggests they have also had five decisions go against them throughout the course of the season.
      Along with Mason’s howler, the Gunners have found themselves at the centre of several 50/50 VAR moments.
      Many disagreed with the decision to award Arsenal a penalty against Man City when Eddie Nketiah clashed with goalkeeper Ederson last month.
      While even more controversy was sparked when Leandro Trossard saw his goal against Leicester chalked off later in February. More

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      Arsenal fans left fuming at VAR AGAIN after being denied penalty for handball vs Bournemouth

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      ARSENAL fans were left raging after being denied a penalty against Bournemouth on Saturday afternoon.The Gunners went behind after just NINE SECONDS at the Emirates when Sam Billing tucked home from close range.
      Arsenal fans thought they were going to be awarded a penalty
      But VAR did not send referee Chris Kavanagh to the monitor
      But Mikel Arteta’s men thought they had been given a route back into the match when Chris Mepham appeared to bring the ball down with his arm.
      Referee Chris Kavanagh did not point to the spot, but VAR then had a close look as Arsenal supporters waited intently.
      However, much to the surprise of many fans watching on, the official was not sent to the monitor as play resumed.
      And fans of the North London club took to social media to vent their frustration.
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      One person said: “What the hell? That was a handball in the box, VAR checked it. Why is it not a penalty for Arsenal? WTF đŸ€Ź”.
      Another added: “How that handball wasn’t a penalty kick is beyond me”.
      A third replied: “It’s pretty damn clear a handball but VAR is always against Arsenal 😡 c’mon boys! 👊”.
      And a fourth responded: “Someone explain the handball rule to me because I’m lost”.
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      Arsenal’s grievances with VAR stem from a huge error which allowed Brentford’s equaliser to stand at the Emirates last month.
      Official Lee Mason forgot to draw the necessary lines for an offside call – which would have seen the goal ruled out.
      And it ended up costing Arteta’s men two points in the title race.
      They came into the Bournemouth clash having watched Manchester City beat Newcastle 2-0 to reduce the gap at the top to just two points. More

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      Arsenal and Chelsea legend Cesc Fabregas fumes after being robbed of LaLiga title with Barcelona

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      CESC FABREGAS believes he was robbed of a LaLiga title during his time at Barcelona.The midfielder is still fuming after a vital Lionel Messi goal was incorrectly ruled out by referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz for offside.
      Cesc Fabregas is still annoyed about losing the 2013/14 LaLiga titleCredit: Getty – Contributor
      Lionel Messi was denied a goal in that crucial meetingCredit: Getty Images – Getty
      Messi was judged to be offside as the ball came to him with officials thinking that Fabregas was the last one to touch the ball.
      But replays showed that it was actually Atletico Madrid defender Juanfran with the final touch.
      If the goal had been allowed to stand then Barcelona would have beaten Atletico on the final day of the 2013/14 season and sealed the league title.
      However, the game finished 1-1, meaning the trophy went to Atletico.
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      And Fabregas – who would have picked up his second Spanish LaLiga title – is still annoyed about the mistake.
      He said: “They took away a league against AtlĂ©tico de Madrid from me.
      “I was in the game and they annulled a goal that was legal, because I didn’t touch the ball, Juanfran touched it.”
      Former Barcelona assistant manager Elvio Paolorosso even revealed that referee Antonio Meteu Lahoz admitted his mistake and apologised to the team after the game.
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      He said: “Messi scored a goal that would have given us the title and the referee ruled it out.
      “We were crying in the dressing room and the referee came to apologise.”
      Midfield maestro Fabregas left Barcelona following the end of the season and returned to the Premier League by joining Chelsea.
      He is now playing for Serie B side Como after a three-year stint with AS Monaco. More

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      Premier League VAR chief Neil Swarbrick to RETIRE at the end of the season after string of controversial decisions

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      PREMIER LEAGUE VAR chief Neil Swarbrick is reportedly set to retire at the end of the season.It comes following a swathe of controversial decisions made by VAR this season.
      VAR chief Neil Swarbrick is set to retire at the end of the seasonCredit: Getty – Contributor
      Professional Game Match Officials (PGMOL) chief Howard Webb has been ruthlessly shaking up the refereeing body in a bid to improve the quality of decision making.
      And The Athletic report Swarbrick is the latest name set to leave as part of the continued overhaul.
      Swarbrick had worked as an on-field official until his retirement in the 2017/18 season.
      He was then appointed as the head of VAR before of its introduction in the 2019/20 season.
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      Swarbrick’s exit comes just weeks after dedicated VAR ref Lee Mason was AXED following his blunder during Arsenal’s clash against Brentford.
      Like Mason, Swarbrick came under scrutiny for a mistake as he oversaw West Ham’s clash against Chelsea and opted not to award a penalty after Tomas Soucek appeared to handle the ball.

      Both officials were subsequently left out of VAR duties for the following round of fixtures, before Mason left PGMOL completely earlier this month.
      However, the report suggests this move is not in reaction to recent events and has instead been in the works for a while.
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      As of yet there is no announcement to his successor.
      VAR once again came under controversy in an Arsenal game this weekend, as an Arsenal opener was ruled out for a soft Ben White foul on Danny Ward.
      Arsenal legend Ian Wright slammed the decision as “a phenomenal mistake”. More

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      Leicester 0 Arsenal 1: Martinelli’s goal keeps title bid on track as Gunners edge past Foxes but VAR is involved again

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      GABRIEL MARTINELLI delivered a perfect ten as Mikel Arteta’s away day specialists strengthened their grip on the title race.The Brazilian international’s 46th minute winner was enough to secure Arsenal’s tenth Premier League victory on the road.
      Martinelli proved to be the match-winner with this strike in the 46th minuteCredit: Getty
      Arsenal had to show some resolve on a tricky afternoon at the King Power StadiumCredit: Reuters
      That’s more than they managed on their travels in the whole of last season.
      And it means that victory at home to struggling Everton on Wednesday night will take them into the final three months of the campaign comfortably clear of second-placed Manchester City. 
      It wasn’t the most convincing of performances from the League leaders but at this stage of the campaign it’s all about results.
      And after briefly looking as if they were about to falter, back to back wins at Aston Villa and now Leicester have got them right back on track.
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      Even another VAR row wasn’t going to disturb their progress as toothless Leicester failed to deliver a single shot on target all afternoon.
      Yet they were made to work hard for their points after they dominated all the early possession without causing too many problems with their slick passing.
      Martin Odegaard and Oleskandr Zinchenko were popping up all over the pitch as they tried to drag their opponents out of position.
      But Leicester stuck gamely to their task and always managed to keep someone between the ball and their goal.
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      So it wasn’t until the 18th minute that Arsenal’s first meaningful attempt arrived when Bukayo Saka looked to capitalise on Wilfred Ndidi’s slip.
      But with England boss Gareth Southgate looking on from the directors’ box, Saka ‘s wayward shot from the edge of the area was never going to trouble keeper Danny Ward.
      Ward had suffered an absolute shocker when Leicester were beaten 4-2 at the Emirates back in August and must have been fearing another test of his nerves from the League leaders.
      And his heart was certainly in his mouth when Leandro Trossard curled one into his top corner after he had flapped tamely at Saka’s 27th minute corner.
      But ref Craig Pawson was advised by VAR Michael Salisbury to take a look at the pitchside TV screen and eventually ruled that Ben White was impeding Ward when the ball had been delivered into his six-yard area.
      It was a close call and one that certainly didn’t meet with the approval of Arteta.
      Limp Leicester struggled to get going throughout the afternoon
      Arsenal were in control for most of the game at the King Power
      And the Arsenal’s boss’ mood wasn’t helped five minutes later when Saka was bundled over from behind by Harry Souttar as he closed in on White’s cross.
      It certainly looked like a penalty on the TV replays as Souttar appeared to stumble before dragging his opponent to the ground 
      But the incident wasn’t even referred to Stockley Park as the travelling Gunners fans vented their anger at the officials.
      They hadn’t forgotten how refs’ chief Howard Webb had apologised to their club two weeks ago after Brentford’s offside equaliser had been allowed to stand.
      And this was doing nothing to dispel the paranoia of the online conspiracy theorists who are convinced that Arsenal are the victims of a referees’ conspiracy designed to stop them winning the league.
      Yet Leicester were unable to take advantage of those reprieves despite the acres of space behind Arsenal’s back four as they looked to compress the game.
      Arsenal fans were left frustrated after VAR judged Danny Ward to have been fouled by Ben White – and the on-field referee agreedCredit: Premier League
      Kelechi Iheanacho did put the ball into Aaron Ramsdale’s net but was clearly offside when he raced on to Tete’s through ball.
      And without the injured James Maddison to pull the strings, Brendan Rodgers’ team were sadly lacking in attacking ideas.
      Tomorrow is the fourth anniversary of Rodgers’ appointment as Leicester boss and one he won’t be celebrating with much enthusiasm when he looks at the League table.
      They have failed to keep a single Premier League clean sheet since returning to action after the World Cup and are still looking anxiously over their shoulders at the relegation zone. 
      And any ideas of buying themselves a bit of breathing space were dispelled right at the start of the second-half.
      It was a frustrating afternoon for Brendan Rodgers as he approaches four years as Leicester bossCredit: Rex
      Because whatever Arteta said to his players during the interval clearly worked and within 53 seconds of the restart they were ahead.
      Gabriel’s long punt forward picked out Trossard on the left wing and when he slipped the ball through Souttar’s legs Martinelli raced in to steer an unerring shot beyond Ward’s reach into the far corner
      It was the young Brazilian’s ninth goal of the season and well worth the pain of a whack on the ankle as he was caught by Ndidi’s follow through.
      Saka thought he had doubled Arsenal’s lead ten minutes later when he tapped in from close range, but once again VAR was not his friend as Martinelli was confirmed to have strayed marginally offside in the build-up.
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      Yet not even the injection of Jamie Vardy’s pace from the subs’ bench was going to spoil their day out as they comfortably saw the game out before hitting the M1 with the points in the bag. More

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      ‘It’s a phenomenal mistake’ – Arsenal legend Ian Wright slams ‘ridiculous’ no penalty decision for foul on Saka

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      IAN WRIGHT has slammed the “ridiculous” decision not to award Bukayo Saka a penalty against Leicester.A controversial first half saw Arsenal denied a spot-kick while VAR also chalked off Leandro Trossard’s goal.
      Bukayo Saka appeared to be bundled over by Harry SouttarCredit: beIN Sports
      Ian Wright did not hold back when criticising the decisionCredit: PA
      The Gunners also could have had a penalty after Saka was bundled over in the area under a challenge from Harry Souttar.
      Wright was outraged at the decision while former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher also felt the Gunners should have been given a penalty.
      Appearing on Premier League Productions, Wright fumed saying: “That was a ridiculous decision. A phenomenal mistake.”
      Fellow pundit Alan Shearer agreed, adding: “Yes definitely 100%, how can they not give?
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      “Yeah it was an accidental slip but that doesn’t matter.”
      Arsenal were also denied a first half goal after Ben White was judged to have impeded Leicester keeper Danny Ward as he went to punch the ball.
      Wright felt VAR made the right call to disallow the goal, but some Gooners felt the officials were inconsistent with how they dealt with the two incidents.
      One Arsenal fan wrote on Twitter: “I just want things to be consistent. If White’s hold is a foul why isn’t the hold called when Saka is held. Would be nice.”
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      Another added: “It’s outrageous how VAR keeps turning a blind eye to situations meant to favor us.”
      And a third said: “I’m tired of this man.”
      Martinelli’s second-half strike was enough to claim all three points and it guaranteed the Gunners’ spot at the top for at least another week. More

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      New angle emerges of RB Leipzig ‘handball’ which shows why VAR didn’t give Man City penalty in last seconds

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      MANCHESTER CITY fumed after they were denied a late penalty against RB Leipzig.But one crucial replay shows Rodri’s header came off the shoulder of Benjamin Heinrichs, not his arm.
      “We’ve had to wait, but the good thing is we’ve cleared it up!!”New angles emerge as Man City’s penalty claims look to come off the defender’s shoulder…Thoughts…? đŸ€”â€”ïž pic.twitter.com/dAHOpUoQk5— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) February 22, 2023

      The ball struck Benjamin Heinrichs’ shoulderCredit: BT Sport
      At first footage appeared to show the full-back moving his hand towards the ball to clear Rodri’s header.
      That sparked mass appeals from the City players, but referee Serdar Gozubuyuk waved away their protests.
      And he made the correct decision as the ball struck Heinrich’s left shoulder – he did not swipe it away using his right hand.
      But BT Sport Rio Ferdinand, who was adamant it was a penalty upon first viewing, still was unsure after seeing the latest replay.
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      Owen Hargreaves felt the replay cleared up any doubt, with it showing Heinrichs arm was also directly against his body.
      City boss Pep Guardiola refused to be drawn into the debate when asked about the decision not to award his side a penalty.
      When asked about the incident he responded: “I didn’t see it.
      “I saw my players but didn’t see the image. It was already checked.
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      “We didn’t talk about the referee decision [at full time]. We know what goes on the past the present and the future. It happened, the referee decide no. It’s no.”
      City drew 1-1 in Leipzig after Riyad Mahrez’s first-half goal was cancelled out by Josko Gvardiol’s towering header. More

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      Fans accuse VAR of being ‘rigged’ as Marcus Rashford looks offside after scoring second goal in 3-0 win over Leicester

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      ANGRY fans claimed VAR is “RIGGED” after Marcus Rashford’s second goal in Manchester United’s 3-0 win over Leicester was allowed to stand – despite replays suggesting he was offside.The striker’s second strike followed his opener in Sunday’s Prem clash, before Jadon Sancho stabbed the third.
      The initial view of the incident made it appear Marcus Rashford was offsideCredit: Sky Sports
      It was an incredibly tight call
      Rashford celebrates after his strike on 56 minutes was allowed, killing off Leicester’s hopes of a Prem comebackCredit: Getty

      Before the lines were drawn on the replay of Rashford’s controversial effort the images appeared to show he was just in front of Leicester’s last defender when Fred slipped him through.
      Some observers accused Prem chiefs of being “corrupt” and accused VAR of being biased towards United.
      But remember Japan’s winning goal against Spain in the World Cup – when post-match replays showed the whole of the ball hadn’t gone out of play before it was crossed?
      Some fans perhaps recalled it – as they pointed out that maybe the angles shown for Rashford’s position were also misleading.
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      When the lines were drawn, they showed Rashford was just behind the defender.
      Despite that, social media was staggered the in-form England hero’s goal was allowed.
      One viewer said: “How on earth was that onside? Football is rigged.”

      Another said: “Prem’s corrupt no red card or offside” and a third posted: “How on earth was that onside? Literally offside, so rigged”.
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      Victory put third-placed United three points off neighbours City and five adrift of leaders Arsenal, who have a game in hand on both Manchester giants.
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      And Rashford now has 17 club goals this term, which OptaJoe pointed out is the highest total in a single campaign by a United player since 19 from Wayne Rooney in 2011-2012.
      Appreciative Red Devils’ fans posted tributes like “And they said @Cristiano is the GOAT” plus “And we’re only half way to the season”.
      United scorers Jadon Sancho and Rashford rejoice as the home side went third in the Premier League with a comfortable victoryCredit: EPA

      17 – Marcus Rashford has scored 17 goals at Old Trafford across all competitions in 2022-23 – the most by a player in a single season for Manchester United since Wayne Rooney in 2011-12 (19). Dreams. pic.twitter.com/etD25mIkmn— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) February 19, 2023 More