Howard Webb summoned all officials to Stockley Park after two HOWLERS
Referees’ chief Howard Webb has called ALL officials to an emergency meeting at Stockley Park on Tuesday after two VAR howlers on Saturday saw Arsenal and Brighton denied goals
- The PGMOL has acknowledged VAR errors against Arsenal and Brighton
- A statement said both incidents happened because of ‘human error’
- Chief referee called all officials to Stockley Park for an emergency meeting
New refs’ chief Howard Webb has summoned all officials to Stockley Park for an emergency summit after two embarrassing – and potentially crucial – VAR blunders in one day.
In a scarcely-believable cock-up revealed by Sportsmail, bungling video official Lee Mason forgot to put the right lines down to adjudge whether a Brentford player was offside in the build-up to their equaliser during Saturday’s draw with title-chasing Arsenal the Emirates.
And on a dark afternoon for the under-fire system Brighton saw a goal chalked off in a draw at rivals Crystal Palace after VAR John Brooks drew the offside line from the WRONG defender. An aghast Webb – who is understood to have reacted incredulously – may now axe the bungling pair after ordering an urgent review in which all options are on the table, according to sources.
The Yorkshire born 51-year-old, who returned to the UK last year after a stint in the US, has ordered all Premier League referees, assistant referees and VAR officials to the meeting on Tuesday. Attendance is thought to be compulsory as Webb seeks to avoid any further catastrophes.
The new chief was forced to contact the Gunners and European hopefuls Brighton to ‘acknowledge significant errors in the VAR process’, according to refs’ body PGMOL.
Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal conceded an offside goal against Brentford on Saturday after a VAR error
VAR Lee Mason forgot to draw offside lines when assessing Ivan Toney’s goal for Brentford
Their statement added: ‘Both incidents, which were due to human error and related to the analysis of offside situations, are being thoroughly reviewed.’
The acknowledgment came after both clubs were left incensed by the decisions, potentially holding huge ramifications for their respective ambitions this season. Mason, also 51, failed to spot that Christian Norgaard was in an offside position when he crossed for Ivan Toney to level. Mikel Arteta, the Arsenal manager, said ‘principles’ of defending have to change when the rules ‘change’ in reference to the decision to allow the goal to stand.
Brighton, meanwhile, revealed yesterday morning that they had received an apology from the refereeing body – which they accepted. In their draw, the offside line was drawn from the wrong Palace defender by Brooks after Pervis Estupinan had scored for Roberto De Zerbi’s side. ‘As was confirmed to the club by PGMOL last night, a serious error was made in disallowing Pervis Estupinan’s goal at Crystal Palace yesterday afternoon,’ the club said.
‘The lines drawn in the VAR room to determine whether Pervis was in an offside position were drawn incorrectly, and the goal should have stood. ‘While hugely disappointed by the error, the club has accepted PGMOL’s apology and will not be making any further comment.’
Brooks was due to be VAR for the Merseyside derby tonight and Arsenal v Manchester City on Wednesday night. PGMOL declined to comment on whether he would remain in post for the games.
The PGMOL has also admitted to making an error in ruling out Pervis Estupinan’s goal at Crystal Palace
VAR should have ruled out Ivan Toney’s goal against Arsenal on Saturday
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