VAR is Funny Until It Isn’t

Some clubs are just annoyed by VAR. Others are getting buried by it.

Adam Smith in disbelief after an equalizing Bournemouth goal is ruled out by his handball in the opposite box.

In a game all too familiar to Bournemouth fans, the Cherries lost 3–0* to Burnley at Turf Moor. It was a game pivotal to Bournemouth’s survival, one where Burnley scored three goals, but it was also a game where Bournemouth scored two goals. They just didn’t count.

Bournemouth struck first. That’s the important part. With the wind at their backs, the Cherries appeared the more spirited side, engineering attempt after attempt at the Burnley net.

The visitors were on the front foot for the entire first half, a domineering display that saw creativity, crisp passing, smart runs, and a number of shots denied by Nick Pope (who, to his credit, had a pretty good game). One shot slotted by the Burnley keeper, a 15th-minute shot by King off a bounce by Billing. Well within the run of play, it seemed a confident start for a team without much away form to speak of. Or not.

See for yourself:

Regardless of where the ball hit, there is not clear and obvious evidence of a handball. Mike Dean isn’t at a good spot to see a handball. In the camera angle from which we see the replay, Stockley Park has no way to overturn the goal. It comes off Billing’s shoulder. Somehow, it doesn’t matter.

To have a legitimate chance reversed so early was obviously deflating. King, back in the lineup after some short-term fitness issues, was certainly affected. The wind was at Bournemouth’s backs, but in a metaphorical sense, it felt like it was beginning to turn. They needed to score before the field flipped for halftime. At 45', the visitors had an xG of 1.17 to Burnley’s 0.84.

Burnley came out the better team in the second half, the wind at their backs no doubt restoring some stamina to the Clarets’ tired legs. Their breakthrough came in the 52nd from Matej Vydra, who’d put pressure on Bournemouth’s Aaron Ramsdale through the entire first half. It was the first goal in a match that could have had three already. Bournemouth tried to answer quickly, Adam Smith controlling a loose McNeil cross in the box and immediately kicking off the counter. Here’s that sequence.

Of course, the second VAR decision had ramifications beyond just an overruled goal for the Cherries. It sent Burnley to the penalty spot, where Jay Rodriguez calmly blasted one to Ramsdale’s left. The visitors were doomed.

(I realize the Adam Smith handball is certainly more arguable but I don’t see it. Replays weren’t really run for this one, though, so I’m happy to be proven wrong if there’s better proof. Peter Rutzler certainly didn’t think it was.)

When Dwight McNeil scored late, it didn’t matter. The game was settled, Bournemouth so deflated from futility that the goal hardly seemed to resonate.

The question now is this: when Bournemouth, a team sorely in need of points to stay up, is stuffed by VAR, who is held responsible? Who answers to the players, the management, and the club staff whose jobs are in jeopardy if this team is relegated?

No one. Stockley Park will continue to function as it does. Big clubs and their fans will gripe about the occasional dropped point or missed fantasy points, but for the most part, VAR will not affect them.

VAR was supposed to add clarity. It has only added confusion. Now, for Bournemouth and other teams, it could add a far more damaging punishment.