I agree this is pretty much where we are at. Stinking decision but if we’re ever to get out of the VAR wormhole, we’ve got to accept refs won’t ever get everything right. Maybe it was better when they got things wrong like this - in a split second - than now, when they watch it 30 times and still make a baffling decision.
If it had gone to VAR, would they have decided it was a ‘clear and obvious error’? Possibly not, because Trossard touched the defender. So they could think ‘no foul’ but also that it was understandable the ref gave it, and so not intervene. They’re, bizarrely, not actually judging the incident, but the referee. Which is one reason why its implementation is a crock of shit.
It would have gone to VAR only if the referee allowed play on and a goal was scored. And it would have gone to VAR only if the ref then called 'offside' after the goal had been scored. The rubric then becomes awkward. As you say VAR would take no action unless they theough the ref had made a clear and obvious error, so the decision to call back the game and give a foul is the on field ref's. At that point, as you say, VAR would have decided 'yeah, whatever'. It shouldn't do this and the rubric should be changed because unlike offside this (shove or dive) is very much a judgement call. The rubric should be that play should go on and if the the 'offender' team gets a goal scoring advantage (and I would include a corner as well as a goal) from the same phase of play, the referee should check the video if he thinks it may be an offence, and VAR should insist on a video review by the onfield ref if the ref thinks there was no offense. Simple.
I am very certainly not saying put every shove on the pitch through VAR review, I am saying when there is a goal or corner 'won' by the potentially offending player in the same phase of play.
In the present case Leo was robbed of a goal scoring opportunity because the ref blew too soon (unforgivable). The liklihood that the ref would probably have ruled it out for a push if he waited to view the vid is irrelevant.
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