Restrained Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta calls lack of VAR clarity a shame after defeat

LONDON – Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta was restrained after another controversial VAR (video assistant referee) decision played a pivotal part in his side’s 2-0 home defeat by West Ham United on Dec 28, which also meant they missed out on returning to the top of the English Premier League.

The Hammers took the lead against the run of play after 13 minutes when Tomas Soucek netted from a pull-back from Jarrod Bowen, who was deemed to have just kept the ball in play.

The VAR check took almost five minutes to complete as Bowen’s positioning blocked the main camera angle, meaning the on-field decision that the ball had stayed in remained.

“It is just a shame that with the technology that we have that it is still not that clear that we can say yes, that it’s out or in,” a disappointed Arteta said.

“It’s done, it’s gone and there’s nothing we can do about it now.”

He has had a number of run-ins with football authorities this season following outbursts about VAR rulings.

Earlier in December, he escaped punishment by the Football Association after branding the decision not to rule out Anthony Gordon’s goal in the 1-0 loss at Newcastle United on Nov 4 an embarrassment and a disgrace. The goal stood following three VAR checks.

West Ham manager David Moyes, meanwhile, said he had not seen all the replays yet, but it was deflating for scoring teams when the VAR screen appears after a goal and the check takes a long time.

He added that his team “defended fantastically well” to secure the win after Konstantinos Mavropanos added a second in the 55th minute, and he was relaxed about sealing a new contract.

“There is plenty of time to talk about that,” he said of contract talks, adding that all parties were happy with West Ham’s current trajectory. “We can get that done when we are ready. I’m enjoying my time.”

The result meant that Arsenal now trail Liverpool by two points at the halfway stage of the season.

“I congratulate West Ham and praise my players. That’s what I can tell you,” Arteta added.

“This is football. When you look at how much we generated in the game, to see the result is very disappointing.

“But they were better than us in both boxes. They had three (shots on target). We had 30 attempts (and eight shots on target). If we don’t score with 30 shots, then we have to do 50 or 60 to try to score.

“I can’t imagine a game where we have more touches in the box, more dominance against a really good West Ham side.

“Today, though, it wasn’t enough to win the game.” REUTERS