How do you solve a problem like VAR?

The pressure on the Premier League’s video assistant referee (VAR) system is building as the number of controversies increases and fans and managers grow increasingly frustrated.

The number of contentious decisions appears to grow with every round of matches. This weekend Liverpool had a goal ruled out after a dubious VAR decision against Roberto Firmino, Everton were denied a penalty in the match against Spurs after a three-minute check on a handball, and Watford were awarded a spot kick against Chelsea, which took two minutes to award.

After that game Chelsea boss Frank Lampard said: “We’re not in a great place with it, are we? Anything that takes that long means there’s something they’re not sure about, so why aren’t we using the screen at the side of the pitch?

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"[If] one referee somewhere else thinks it was more of a penalty than the referee on the pitch did, then we’re in a really dangerous place and you’re going to be tossing a coin every week to see what decision you’re going to get.”

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp was also unhappy after seeing his side beat Aston Villa thanks to a stoppage time goal. “It’s not right that we sit here and talk about it and laugh about it. Managers get sacked over it,” he said.

Manager meeting

Top flight managers from clubs in the South spoke to officials about the system last week and another meeting for Northern club bosses is planned with Mike Riley, head of the Professional Game Match Officials Limited group this week.

That meeting is expected to “discuss whether managers should be allowed to appeal a refereeing decision during a game in a potentially radical change to how the video assistant referees are used”, reports the Daily Telegraph.

It says one chairman has called for VAR to be suspended and there are fears it is becoming an “embarrassment” to the league.

“Clubs say there will be a ‘robust’ discussion on the failings of VAR. Although there is an implied threat that some might even call for the suspension of the system, it appears the majority want to give it more time to be improved before moving towards that dramatic course of action.”

Pitch side monitors

One aspect of VAR that could change is allowing on-field referees to view replays, says The Guardian.

“Following the latest VAR controversies the meeting on Thursday will include discussion of whether match officials should be allowed to consult pitchside monitors. Referees in all other competitions that currently use the VAR system are allowed to consult these monitors but those taking charge of Premier League matches are not.”

Officials panicking

Video assistant referees carry out their reviews on screens at Stockley Park in west London, explains the BBC, but pundit Chris Sutton says that the system is not working effectively.

The former Celtic, Blackburn and Norwich striker said: “At Stockley Park there is sheer panic.

“The referees have the opportunity to walk across to the monitor but are not using it. They are not taking responsibility; they are just scared. The referees need to step up. If I was reliant on… a back-up team and they failed me again and again I would make my own decisions, go across to the monitor and trust myself - because that's what I've been trained to do.”

So what to do?

So what can be done to fix the problem? Alex Keble of FourFourTwo suggests time limits and the use of monitors.

“The argument against using the monitors is that it will unnecessarily slow the game down. We are well past that point. Surely if a decision cannot be made within a few seconds by an assistant referee watching on a screen then it should be passed back to the on-field ref,” he argues.

Alternatively why not abandon the idea altogether. VAR is a victory for “those who believe results are more important than entertainment, for those who believe emotion is secondary to mathematics”, he says.

“We all fell in love with football the same way: as children, giving in to pandemonium as the ball rippled the net. That feeling is sacred, but… many of us have already had the experience of delaying our celebrations until VAR gives the all-clear. Nothing is worth having the emotional impact of a goal stolen away.”