y va marquer wrote:
Guess we'll just have to get used to the game being interrupted with increasing frequency as refs doubt their own judgement and defer to technology, as players hound the ref to demand reviews and act out in a VAR friendly way.
Games being decided by penalties, players playing for penalties.
I get what you mean, Y va. I don't think I've ever seen a World Cup with so many penalties before.
It's also worth keeping in mind that important club games are already being decided by penalties to a high degree though, and players are already doing their utmost to win them. The expected knock-on effect from technical assistance is that it's going to lead to better defending, because it will be harder to get away with illegal behaviour behind the referee's back (and conversely, people will get carded for outright cheating which will lead to less simulation). I'd view that as a positive development.
The hounding of referees is a bit ridiculous right now, with people being busier complaining about a decision than defending a counter, but I think it can be avoided by handing out cards, just like you do when a Mourinho-coached team gang up on the referee and start waving imaginary red cards at every freekick. Maybe make a rule that players can't question the referee that way. If they want a dialogue it'll happen through the captain on the pitch and no one else.
Conversely, we've seen a lot of incidents where defenders just stop playing because they think an opponent is offside. I think we conceded at least 3-4 goals last season this way, and it makes my blood boil. That's never going to be an issue with VAR. Everyone will have to play until the whistle.
