Michael Owen has criticized VAR for “letting the referee down” after Everton’s controversial penalty claim was overturned in their 2-2 draw with Manchester United.
David Moyes’ side looked on course for victory after first-half goals from Beto and Abdoulaye Doucoure put them in control.
However, Manchester United staged a comeback in the second half, with Bruno Fernandes scoring a stunning free-kick before Manuel Ugarte equalized with ten minutes remaining.
The game’s biggest talking point came in stoppage time when Everton were awarded a penalty after Matthijs de Ligt and Harry Maguire appeared to pull Ashley Young’s shirt, causing him to fall inside the box.
Referee Andy Madley pointed to the spot immediately, but VAR official Matt Donohue instructed him to review the decision.
After watching a replay on the pitch-side monitor, Madley overturned his initial call, denying Everton a late chance to win the game.
Owen, however, believes the referee was not given the crucial angles needed to make an informed decision.
“They’ve not looked at the right angle, in my opinion,” Owen told Premier League Productions. “If the referee only saw what we saw in real-time, I don’t blame him for overturning the call. But he wasn’t given all the angles, and that’s where VAR failed him.”
According to Owen, a behind-the-goal angle clearly showed De Ligt pulling Young’s shirt yet this crucial footage was not shown to Madley during the review.
“From the side-on angle he was given, it just looks like a dive,” Owen continued. “I agree with the referee on that evidence, you can’t give a penalty.
But that’s not the whole picture. VAR is supposed to provide every angle, yet they failed to show the most important one.”
The former England striker also pointed out Young’s exaggerated reaction but insisted that shouldn’t have influenced the decision.
“Yes, it was the worst dive ever his legs went flying after a tiny tug but that doesn’t change the fact that there was a shirt pull,” Owen added. “If the referee had seen that, he might have stuck with his original call.”
Ultimately, Owen placed the blame squarely on VAR, not the referee.
“VAR didn’t give him the right angle,” he concluded. “That’s why this decision is so frustrating. It’s not about whether it was a penalty or not it’s about the referee not being given the full picture to make the right call.”
The result keeps Everton above Manchester United in the Premier League table, but the late drama leaves Moyes’ side feeling hard done by. Meanwhile, the debate over VAR’s effectiveness in crucial decisions rages on.