Video assistant referee

Okay.

Um, and fi- we'll finish off with Haaland, um, with the goal which the referees, um, association or whatever there is, they, uh, said that they perhaps should have got VAR to look at that and wouldn't have been a goal.

Uh, his baseline bonus is only eight, so without that goal he wouldn't have been in with a chance of bonus obviously, 'cause he didn't do anything else apart from score.

But it was a bit weird 'cause he, he got the two points bonus and then he suddenly got three.

That was Hogwarts.

Gil, all the guys couldn't stop talking about how, uh, VAR would call back a goal because the player's offside by a hair in soccer, which is the right call regardless of the margins, but these NFL referees would watch the replay for, what, 90 minutes and still make the wrong call? Yeah, you're probably right about that in many cases.

Mako, Shades of Mako, "You won't sneak in a sneaky freaky brother sneaking in from the rear 14 times this segment." No, I will not.

Bobtimus Prime, "But Aikman's crutch is as good as any crutch in the crutch storeroom at the crutch factory."

Again, what do you make of the process that's gone on behind the scenes that has meant that goal stood when it should've perhaps been disallowed because of the positioning of Enzo Fernandes?

So I think that whoever was in the VAR studio Probably hasn't played football, hasn't refereed as much football games as they should have, doesn't know football.

Maybe they used to be involved with rugby or cricket-

[laughs]

Do you think there's any...

Like, I try and, try and empathize and try and understand how a mistake like this happens.

Do you think there's any argument that they are rushing? Because we've all been complaining all season, and, and since VAR was introduced, um, that it takes too long.

Mm-hmm.

It is what it is.

Oh, then as for, um, who else? Who else? Ah, there was a story about, um, yeah, the, the, the, um, VAR official that- This Richarlison spurs- Now I think, I think Spurs are being very spiteful.

That guy scored 11 Premier League goals.

12.

Harry Potter 1905.

Gil, all the guys couldn't stop talking about how VAR would call back a goal because the player's offside by a hair in soccer, which is the right call regardless of the margins.

But these NFL referees would watch the replay for, what, 90 minutes and still make the wrong call?

Yeah,

So I think if you see Foden's in isolation, you can see how that could be a red card.

And then- Um, I guess VAR's not gonna intervene there.

Um, but really-

Yeah, they don't get involved when they don't n- don't need to.

The referee or the linesman waves his flag, the goal is ruled out for offside, which I think is an important point to make.

The decision is offside.

And then VAR goes, "Hang on a minute.

This is Manchester."

I remember him.

We had two VAR decisions go in our favor.

First of all, one didn't, but whatever.

We got two at home.

In February, his most recent visit to St James' Park came for the 1-0 defeat against Everton back in May 2025.

VAR is in operation, of course, in the Premier League.

and that is Peter Banks.

So, John, it's been a while since I had a prediction of you.

A man on a galloping horse would have questioned that call.

No, I don't think, I don't think, and I'm getting on to an old hobby horse of mine, with VAR until they show the crowd what pictures they've looked at at Stockley Park and their commentary, And who decides what? It's always regarded as something of a con trick because it's all there and the screens are there.

Why don't they follow the lead of the other sports like rugby, rugby league, cricket? You get every angle, every angle that they see.

I mean, twice last year, for example, we had admissions that two goals were given because the one that was the boss in Stockley Park said goal, no goal, where the two others were saying goal, yet what the boss said went, which is ridiculous.