More Premier League VAR farce as Michael Oliver has to stop Watford-Tottenham clash for three-and-a-half minutes to replace his BATTERY pack after losing communication with Stockley Park … and then only adds on two minutes stoppage time!
- VAR in the Premier League has come under more scrutiny after long delay
- Referee Michael Oliver had to replace his battery with his fourth official
- Oliver had lost connection to the VAR officials at Stockley Park during a review
- Fans at Vicarage Road began to chant: ‘It’s not football anymore’ during the wait
- He then only added two minutes on at the end of the half despite taking longer
- Ex-professional referee Peter Walton was lost for words at h alf time on BT Sport
Watford vs Tottenham was delayed for three-and-a-half minutes for a flat battery
ByIeuan Ivett For MailonlinePublished:
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There has been more VAR controversy in the
Oliver, one of the most experienced topflight referees, blew his whistle after a dangerous tackle from Watford’s Etienne Capoue on Tottenham’s Japhet Tanganga. The incident then went under review for a potential red card challenge, however, that was when the comedy of errors then began.
It appeared that Oliver was signalling that he could not hear anything from the VAR officials, who were based over in Stockley Park.VAR in the Premier League has come under more scrutiny after a long delay at Vicarage RoadMichael Oliver’s battery ran out during the first half of Watford vs Tottenham after a foul
Watford’s Etienne Capoue was shown a yellow card for a foul on Japhet Tanganga
The tackle went under review with VAR official’s but was deemed to not be a red cardAfter trying to signal to his officiating team over the other side of the field that his battery had clearly gone flat, he decided to walk over to the touchline where a confused Jose Mourinho was in conversation with an official.
The tackle was deemed to not be a red card challenge, but little did Oliver know of that, as he removed his dead battery and waited for his fourth official to give him his one.
The fourth official – who comically tried to take his battery off his arm without removing his jacket – eventually got his pack and handed it to Oliver. By this time, over two minutes had passed and fans at Vicarage Road had burst into chanting: ‘It’s not football anymore!’ after the lengthy delay.
However, Oliver had lost connection to Stockley Park during the VAR review
Oliver had to replace his battery with his fourth official’s but it took over three minutes
Fans at Vicarage Road began to chant ‘ It’s not football anymore ‘due to the lengthy delay
After three-and-a-half minutes of waiting, the match finally resumed with a Spurs free kick but a sour taste was left among fans in the stadium and others watching at home .
To add insult to injury for the players and supporters, only two minutes were added on at the end of the half . Ex-professional referee Peter Walton was bemused at half-time and said on BT Sport: ‘I’ve got nowhere to go on this one, because that’s a factual thing!It took over three minutes and we only got two. That’s something the officials need to be looking at. ‘
Oliver eventually started play again, but more complaints came at the end of the half
He only added two minutes on to the end, despite needing almost four to his battery swap******************
On the challenge that saw Capoue yellow carded, Walton said: ‘It was completely missed (by Michael Oliver) otherwise he would have taken action.
‘He’s almost in a domino effect, he can’t see what we can see from the side view. His feet are raised and it’s a reckless challenge. Maybe the assistant could have helped him out with a better angle.
He added: ‘It’s madness in your eyes, but in terms of the law, we don’t want VAR involved every time there’s a potential yellow card. VAR is there to detect red cards. ‘
Michael Oliver was applauded by pundits and fans across the country after he made history becoming the first referee in English football to use the pitch side monitor a couple of weeks ago.
In the third round of the FA Cup, Oliver watched multiple replays of an incident between Derby County’s Tom Huddlestone and Crystal Palace’s Luka Milivojevic and overturned the decision to brandish the latter with a red card.Michael Oliver made history and was the first referee in England to use pitchside monitor
He used the monitor to watch multiple replays before overturning a yellow card to a red card
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