The Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) in England has announced the removal of VAR (Video Assistant Referee) official Matt Donohue, and his assistant Blake Antrobus, from officiating any match in the upcoming round of the Premier League, following a significant refereeing error during the Manchester derby.
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The decision came after the VAR team confirmed the validity of the decisive goal scored by Norwegian striker Erling Haaland, which gave Manchester City a 1-0 victory over their rivals Manchester United.
The refereeing committee officially acknowledged, in a subsequent statement, that an error occurred in the application of VAR technology. Haaland's second-half goal was initially disallowed for offside, then was awarded after a review found no offside on the Norwegian striker. However, the committee clarified that the video team overlooked the interference of his teammate (who was in an offside position and attempted to play the ball), an intervention that should have resulted in upholding the original decision to disallow the goal.
The head of the English referees' committee, Howard Webb, and his supporting team made the decision to remove the officials, with the pair not expected to return to officiating matches before the end of the upcoming international break, as a disciplinary measure.
Resource: Al-Ghad.
