Jay Bothroyd was praised for his spot-on reaction to the use of VAR in the heated Manchester derby goal.
Sky Sports commentator Jay Bothroyd has been praised for speaking up against former Premier League official Dermot Gallagher about Erling Haaland’s controversial winning goal in the Manchester derby.
Manchester City went down to 10 men after Phil Foden kicked out at Bruno Fernandes in the first half. Then, just after the hour mark, Haaland scored the first goal. At first, the goal was ruled offside, but VAR changed the call, deciding Haaland was onside thanks to Manchester United’s left-back Patrick Dorgu. However, Pro Ref, the group that manages professional referees, admitted they made a mistake allowing the goal to stand.
The mistake came because VAR missed that Enzo Fernandez was offside when he tried to play the ball before it reached Haaland. Even though Fernandez didn’t touch the ball, many felt his position distracted Manchester United’s defenders from stopping the cross.
Former goalkeeper Joe Hart couldn’t believe the goal counted, saying the “letter of the law” should have stopped it. Jay Bothroyd shared a similar view and got praise for it.
Bothroyd told Sky Sports, “Some people making these decisions haven’t played the game. Players get punished for mistakes, and officials should too. Saying sorry isn’t enough, especially if they don’t do it on camera. It feels like an empty statement.”
He also challenged Dermot Gallagher for his explanation. Gallagher said the officials “lost focus” and that offside would have been the easier call because Fernandez clearly affected two United players. Gallagher thought they were too focused on whether Fernandez touched the ball and forgot about the impact on the defenders.
Fans agreed with Bothroyd, with one saying, “Jay Bothroyd is the GOAT for calling out Howard Webb on live TV.” Another wrote, “If refs lose focus, they should lose their jobs! Simple!” A third added, “Howard Webb said this wouldn’t happen again, but it did at the same stadium. These refereeing groups should be disbanded. It’s not acceptable.”
Matt Donohue was the VAR official for the derby but won’t be on the Premier League’s list of officials for the next round of games. The league often leaves out officials facing criticism, though they haven’t said why.
Meanwhile, match referee Michael Oliver will take charge of Bournemouth vs. Liverpool this weekend and won’t be sitting at the VAR screen for that game.