Newcastle manager Eddie Howe believes referees are relying too much on VAR after “a lot of mistakes” were made in Newcastle’s 3-1 10-a-side FA Cup win over Aston Villa in his absence.
VAR was not used until after the fifth round and referee Chris Kavanagh and assistant referees appeared to have made at least three key decisions wrong in a blunder at Villa Park that could easily have cost the Magpies.
Villa’s Tammy Abraham’s opening goal was clearly offside and Kavanagh failed to send off Lucas Digne for a shin-high tackle on Jacob Murphy. The worst call came after the break when Kavanagh and assistant referee Nick Greenhalgh ruled Digne’s handball was outside the box even though it was at least three yards inside.
Tammy Abraham celebrates opening game against Newcastle
The only big decision that Kavanagh got right was sending off Villa goalkeeper Marco Bizzotto for bringing down Murphy near the center circle, which gave Newcastle a platform to fight back against 10 men in the second half.
Sandro Tonali scored after a free-kick that should have been a penalty, added a second goal with a sweet shot from distance, and Nick Waltemade sealed the victory.
Howe says VAR has given referees something to hide.
“I think there’s a debate about that, because whenever you have VAR it’s always, ‘Well, I won’t give you that, but let’s check,'” he said.
Aston Villa goalkeeper Marco Bizzotto is sent off for a rough challenge on Newcastle’s Jacob Murphy
“And your decision-making is probably not as sharp as it normally should be, so I think that’s probably where the difference is.
“I always worry about VAR because, as I’ve said many times, I love the feeling of it even tonight. Even if a goal is awarded and you don’t see the flag or the referee, it’s still a goal and no one can take it away.”
“I still really love that joy you get in those moments, but VAR takes that away. But on the other hand, I wish they had had VAR for that first goal against us and probably for the whole game.”
Sandro Tonali celebrates Newcastle’s equalizer
“I think it gives you accurate results. It makes the game more concise in terms of decision-making, but you have to respect that especially for us today, when you’re at a disadvantage, those moments are worth their weight in gold.”
“So I’m still very bothered about it.
“The officials are not intentionally making (wrong) decisions. That’s what they’re thinking at the time. But without VAR, I think they would have made a lot of mistakes.”
Sky Sports News has contacted PGMOL for comment on Mr Howe’s criticism.
Lucas Digne avoids red card and penalty in Aston Villa vs. Newcastle
Emery: “Referees need VAR”
On February 1, Villa manager Unai Emery said VAR was “unfair” after it cruelly intervened and disallowed a goal in the Premier League defeat to Brentford.
But the Spaniard was asked about the refereeing of Saturday’s FA Cup game against Newcastle and admitted that referees needed the help of VAR.
Emery added: “VAR makes sense today. VAR is needed to help the referees.”
“We played a very competitive game. I was very happy with the first half. The red card and Newcastle’s goal made it more difficult for us.”
