James Maddison, a midfielder for Tottenham, has expressed that referees appear “petrified” to make calls due to the influence of the video assistant referee (VAR), particularly after he was denied a last-minute penalty against Leeds on Monday.
Maddison, who came off the bench, fell following a challenge from Lukas Nmecha, but both referee Jarred Gillett and VAR rejected his appeal for a spot kick.
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The match ended in a 1-1 draw, leaving Tottenham just two points above the Premier League relegation zone with only two matches remaining.
Maddison, 29, made his season debut after recovering from an anterior cruciate ligament injury. On Instagram, he clarified, “To be clear… The slight touch that changed my direction came from the outside of my right foot, not from Nmecha, and I informed the referee of this.”
“However, the review was concluded in about 20 seconds. It feels like officials are hesitant to make decisions on the field because of VAR. We will continue to fight. COYS.”
This isn’t the first instance of Maddison criticizing referees. Previously in September, he remarked that referees and VAR “had a dreadful start” to the season after the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) chief Howard Webb implemented a “less intervention” strategy for VAR in the Premier League.
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BBC analyst Alan Shearer has also criticized VAR, stating that the standard of officiating is “the worst we’ve seen in a long time” and is “only deteriorating” with its usage.
Former Liverpool defender Stephen Warnock stated that VAR is the “worst addition to the game,” while former England and Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney noted that technology is stripping away the emotions from football.
Furthermore, Europe’s elite leagues have been called to a summer meeting with Uefa to discuss the implementation of VAR technology, with Uefa’s refereeing chief Roberto Rosetti mentioning, “I think we’ve lost sight of why VAR was initially introduced.”