Roberto De Zerbi has given his opinion on the VAR debate as the technology becomes more likely to be removed from the Premier League.
Clubs will vote on their vision for the instrument’s future at next month’s AGM. This could be a potentially historic move, led by Wolves, who feel they have had a tough time this term.
The Premier League could therefore find itself battling some of its members as it looks to battle to avoid a potentially historic collapse in what is considered one of the greatest advances in football history.
Wolves have broken ranks in a move they say will have the support of fed-up fans across the country.
De Zerbi, speaking on Wednesday evening after his side’s 2-1 defeat to Chelsea, again criticized the referees who operate the technology rather than the technology itself.
Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi has given his opinion on the possible scrapping of VAR
Premier League clubs will vote on whether to scrap the technology from next season
De Zerbi focused his tirade on the referees and mentioned Michael Salisbury, who was also responsible for his team’s defeat against Chelsea
“I think I have so many problems being a coach that I don’t want to say anything if it’s not my business,” he said. ‘We have to talk about the level of the referees, just like the level of the coaches and the players.
‘Behind the VAR are the people and we have to analyze the level of the people. I didn’t like the referee much today. Not for the penalty, because nothing changes, but I didn’t like the personality or the control of the game.’
Michael Salisbury was in charge of Wednesday’s match at the Amex, where the Seagulls remained in 10th place in the table, at risk of slipping to 13th on the final day.
He had awarded Chelsea a penalty in the first half when Marc Cucurella made a mistake, but he overturned the VAR decision.
Blues captain Reece James was also sent off in the second half for appearing to kick out Joao Pedro.
However, the Zerbi jumped to the English man’s defense, taking another aim at the refereeing team as he claimed his side should have received their own penalty.
“I’m sorry for James’ red card because I think it was a normal reaction,” he said. ‘If you have played football in your life, you know that a reaction like this can happen, but Adringra’s penalty was clear.
‘It was clear from the bench. It’s clearer on TV.’
De Zerbi has also expressed his opinion on the red card of Reece James, who was sent off for violent behavior
The Italian claimed his side should have been awarded a penalty for a possible foul on Simon Adingra
Premier League sources have said they would oppose the motion to scrap VAR, adding they were confident they had enough votes to block it.
They will point to statistics showing an increase in the number of correct decisions from 82 percent to 96 percent since the introduction of VAR, and urge clubs to focus on improvements to speed up decision-making. For example, semi-automatic offside calls are being introduced.
Early indications are that clubs will side with the Premier League, but will use the vote as an opportunity to push for much-needed improvements to what they see as a flawed system. Clubs will lobby for more investment in VAR systems, especially to extend decision times.