The Premier League will give Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham supporters as well as other fans across the world the chance to hear how referees make decisions during matches in the English top-flight for the first time this season.
The decision to finally release audio from discussion between the VAR and on-field officials comes after several contentious calls were made over the weekend.
One of the major decisions which has sparked conversation was the ‘goal’ from Alejandro Garnacho for Manchester United against Arsenal which was later adjudged to be offside and consequently ruled out. After the game, which saw the Gunners waltz away victorious following two late goals in stoppage time, Erik ten Hag launched an attack on VAR, reeling off the numerous decisions which he felt were incorrect.
Now the Red Devils boss, and everybody else, will have a chance to listen to why VAR and the on-field referees decided to rule out Garnacho’s strike as well as every other contentious call over the weekend. According to ESPN, an episode of ‘Match Officials: Mic’d Up’ will airs on Wednesday, September 6 at 8pm on Sky Sports.
The show, which will feature Michael Owen as a guest, will also be broadcasted on TNT Sports at 8:30pm. The decision to do so follows a successful trial in May when Howard Webb, the chief refereeing officer, explained various calls between the match official and those at Stockley Park
While supporters will be keen to hear how the the ‘correct’ decisions were made, they will be just as eager to listen to VAR audio when the ‘incorrect’ decisions are made. For example, earlier this season, Webb acknowledged that made referees had made major errors, being the failure to award Wolves an injury-time penalty at Old Trafford on the opening weekend.
However, despite this, it remains to be seen whether any audio from conversations which led to ‘incorrect’ decisions will be included in the review show. It also remains to be seen what incidents will be included in the programme on Wednesday night. (Football.London)
