Aster Vranckx tackled the ball in front of Beerschot player Coulibaly, but in the sliding movement that followed he also worked the Malian’s ankle. On the advice of the VAR, referee Visser changed his yellow card to a red one, which was greeted with applause by Frank De Bleeckere of the Referee Department.
“If you take a picture of the contact, you say that it is red. But not if you know how it came about,” says Gert Verheyen in Extra Time.
“The VAR does indeed take that photo”, Filip Joos takes over. “But life is dynamic, just like football. Life does not stand still, neither does football. The ref is no longer allowed to use his gut feeling, but must decide according to a shopping list (of mistakes).
“I would be furious here as a referee, because he did make the right decision initially. He followed his gut feeling.”
The consensus of the Extra Time table is therefore that red is an exaggeration. “We football players all say the same here. Because we have been on the field for hours.”
Frank Raes has the solution: an ex-football player in the van of the VAR. “Who is so crazy about doing that?” Sonck wonders.
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Filip Joos gives an additional reason why the VAR recommended a red card. “They were the same men in the van as in Trebel’s mistake, where they wrongly did not intervene.”
“That person is heavily charged for that and is now full of stress in that van. He only thinks of 1 thing: this should not happen again, ignore such a red card. He is therefore 10 times stricter.”
Sonck: “I am also annoyed by the haughty way in which the referee gives that red card afterwards, without explaining to Vranckx. That is no fun. At least you could chat with De Bleeckere himself.”
Joos: “De Bleeckere was able to manage a match. He could whistle on his gut feeling. But now he is the puppet of regulations and a VAR that hang together with hooks and eyes.”
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