VAR disaster sends African Champions League final into mayhem

A VAR disaster of epic proportion has sent the final of the African Champions League final into total chaos to cause one of the most unbelievable conclusions to a football match you will ever see.

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Source: Getty Images

The CAF Champions League final second-leg clash between Tunisian club side EL Tunis and Moroccan rivals Wydad Casablanca was called to an abrupt end after only 61 minutes when the referee refused to look at the VAR after an incorrect offside decision denied the visitors a vital equaliser.

Wydad's players left the pitch and refused to play on in protest as widespread reports revealed the VAR system was not working even before the match.

CAF president Ahmad Ahmad came down to the pitch in an attempt to settle the situation but it only added more fuel to the fire as fans invaded the pitch while players and officials faced off in heated scenes.

With no one able to come to a resolution nearly an hour and a half after Wydad players first stormed off the pitch, El Tunis was crowned victors 2-1 on aggregate after the referee called an abrupt end to the match deeming Wydad to have forfeit the match. 

Commentators struggled to piece together the wild scenes to their audience. 

“So El Karti scored the goal, now this goal was onside. All of these fans inside the stadium saw that it was actually a goal that should have been allowed,” the commentator said.

“Now the problem is, VAR has got a technical issue, and despite the fact that everyone has seen these images, when you actually go to the transmission van, it’s not actually ratified by CAF to use those images for verification.

“So it can’t give you the final decision on a goal or not if it isn’t going through the proper rules and regulations which is video assistant referee. It basically means that the images you can see there are not valid which means that it’s a catch 22 situation and the Tunisian coach has insisted, ’We will not play on until we see VAR show us that was a goal that should have been allowed’.”

“We are just caught in between a couple of conflicting situations that are preventing this game from being continued, it’s been like that for the last hour now. You are still watching a match that has been suspended after the 61st minute. So we do have 30 minutes left to play, whether it can be played now or it needs to be replayed tomorrow or the day after, that’s a very good question. And one I cannot answer right now.”

It is another black mark on VAR after issues with the technology played a major role in Melbourne Victory's controversial A-League grand final win against Newcastle in 2018. 

 


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3 min read
Published 1 June 2019 6:19pm
Updated 1 June 2019 6:22pm
Source: SBS The World Game

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