Forgot to draw the lines? Drew the line from the wrong player? Not handball because his arm was breaking his fall? And this is all on one day of football.
Clearly var isn't getting the big calls right. It's also hugely impacting how the officials officiate, and means celebrating a goal is not spontaneous and joyful as it once was.
I used to think VAR was a great idea, inevitable to the evolution of top class football. Then I thought it was the users not using the technology correctly. But it's the whole package that isn't sufficient or consistent. If it stays it needs a rework on its application and clarity on use.
The process doesn't consistently identify when the ball has left one player for offside calls. Frame rate or incompetence regardless, it's inconsistent.
It gets involved in some instances but not others, going back past passages of play on one occasion, but not the next.
The premise of clear and obvious means it doesn't challenge the referee or give him chance to look again, if the threshold isn't met. Yet this threshold is subjective and differs from game to game.
It needs a full rework from the top. Panel of 3 var officials sat apart from each other, not this shadowy office with a match commander breathing down someone's neck. Fourth on standby in case of issues with one, illness, connectivity etc. If 2 or more flag a decision, it is referred for review to the referee. All 3 plus the game officials are mic'd up.
Frame used for offsides is the one where the ball has clearly left the previous player. Any showing potential contact are not used. If the next one shows the ball a yard away, tough luck the technology just needs to get better. Akin to the daylight rule we used to have for offsides giving attackers the advantage. Frames are numbered clearly and those are visible to all in decisions, and to viewers.
Team captains are allowed one challenge per half to contend any decision or incident they feel has been missed, which is returned and reusable if challenge is upheld, and lost if not.
Assistants are told to raise the flag for an obvious offside. Carrying on increases the chances of injury in a potential more intense goal scoring but unlawful situation, and we are already seeing some players play the system by retrieving the ball, seeing the flag stayed down, and then initiating a new phase of play rather than taking the chance on themselves.
It's a horrible feeling knowing that later today when we play, the chances of us yet again taking about var decisions and application of the law is pretty high.