Jamie Carragher moots more technology after West Ham United VAR saga v Arsenal
Jamie Carragher has suggested we need more technology in football to see whether or not the ball has gone out of play in situations after West Ham beat Arsenal 2-0 on Thursday 28 December.
This is the second time this season that a tight decision has been made as to whether or not the ball has remained in play, with Arsenal also involved on the other occasion, prompting outrage following their 1-0 defeat to Newcastle.
Carragher also weighed in on the decision itself, claiming the ball looked out but it would have been difficult for VAR to overturn the referee’s initial decision.
Taking to Twitter during the game [28 December], the former Liverpool man shared: “The ball looks out for the West Ham goal but the VAR couldn’t overturn that.
“At Newcastle, I thought the ball stayed in, but on both occasions, the referee’s assistant is on the opposite side so it’s virtually impossible for him to make a decision. Is it possible to get technology along the by-line?”
A difficult one to call
Yet again a game which has seen West Ham impress against top-six opposition has been shrouded by controversy surrounding a refereeing decision that could realistically have gone either way.
On this occasion, it went in favour of the Hammers, but arguments both for and against the call will surely be put forward and it would be hard to dispute either side. It’s a 50/50 call, and the decision to stick with the on-field decision is probably the best way to go.
But Carragher is right. If VAR is going to insist on reviewing this type of incident, then they should have the technology to do it with the highest degree of accuracy – whether that means installing new technology into Premier League stadiums or not.
People will complain that we don’t need any more technology in the game given the mixed success of VAR since it was introduced, but anything that can improve these types of tight decisions should be welcomed as goal-line technology was.
In other West Ham news, Alan Shearer reacted to a “devastating” moment against Arsenal.