Gary O’Neil backs Wolves’ bid to abolish VAR in its current form after his club tabled a resolution to remove it, and argues ‘everyone would agree this season it hasn’t worked too well’
- Gary O’Neil has backed his club’s bid to abolish VAR in its current form in the league
- Wolves this week issued a resolution to remove VAR for the 2024-2025 campaign
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Gary O’Neil has backed Wolves’ bid to abolish VAR in its current form, claiming every Premier League manager has problems with the system.
The Molineux club issued a resolution earlier this week to abolish VAR for the 2024-2025 season and a vote could take place among Premier League clubs in June.
It seems highly unlikely that the motion will reach the 70 percent majority needed to make a change, but with supporters increasingly fed up with VAR, Wolves’ stance will put their rivals in the spotlight.
“It’s good to start a discussion and see how many teams want that and how many don’t,” O’Neil said. ‘Those who do, are they happy with it in its current form?
“It has to evolve and I would be surprised if we started next season in the shape it is in now. Everyone agrees that this season hasn’t worked very well.
Wolves boss Gary O’Neil has backed his club’s bid to abolish VAR in its current form
The club has submitted a proposal to remove VAR from the Premier League in 2024-2025
‘As it stands I would be more than happy to see it abolished. As it is, it hasn’t improved the experience for fans. I’m in Molineux once every two weeks and the mood of the fans is very clear. There is a real negative energy about it.
“There is still room for improvement and it needs to be improved drastically, but if we leave it as it is, I would be in favor of getting rid of it.”
O’Neil admitted VAR was probably here to stay, but he hopes Wolves’ stance on the technology will lead to improvements.
O’Neil’s Wolves have been frustrated by a number of controversial decisions this season
“It’s very important to stand up for match fans,” he said. “Maybe there’s a side to the discussion where people see us as old-fashioned, and I understand all that.
‘But the impact it has on attending matches is enormous. What I hear from the fans every week is that they don’t enjoy it that much. The club has raised this important issue. It will either go away – which is probably unlikely – or it will get a lot better.”