The disallowed goal by Virgil van Dijk against Manchester City sparks debate, with Howard Webb defending the referee’s decision based on the interpretation of offside rules.
Howard Webb has been the head of the Premier League referees long enough now, almost three years, to know that backing his officials over Virgil van Dijk’s disallowed goal against Manchester City would not end the discussion.
Van Dijk’s potential equaliser was ruled out after assistant Stuart Burt and VAR determined Andrew Robertson had committed an offside offence by ducking under the ball on its way to goal, an action deemed to impact goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Webb described the decision as “not unreasonable,” noting that he didn’t directly say it was correct because the situation “falls within a subjective corridor where both outcomes can be deemed correct.”
The Premier League’s match centre on X stated the goal was disallowed, “with Robertson in an offside position and deemed to be making an obvious action directly in front of the goalkeeper.”
In the VAR audio, assistant VAR Tim Wood drove the discussion, saying, “I agree with the on-field decision. I think it’s offside. It’s a clear, obvious action which clearly impacts on the goalkeeper.”
VAR Michael Oliver then confirmed the on-field judgment: “He is in an offside position, very close to the goalkeeper and makes an obvious movement directly in front of him. Check complete, offside.”
Webb stressed that the obvious action and being close to the goalkeeper were valid reasons for the decision on their own.
The incident highlights one of the biggest issues with VAR, that a decision can have two valid outcomes and “One side can think it’s reasonable, and the other unreasonable.”