VAR – The Grinch that stole Christmas football

How did you enjoy your Christmas? If you love football, then you would have been looking forward to bulging Boxing Day nets, incredible drama and plenty of twists and turns at breakneck pace. Whoever you support, you’ll have been after excitement.

I write this with no axe to grind against the results, or any particular decisions. The team I support earned six points and scored more goals than you can count on one hand. Nor was my team robbed of any points, or indeed goals, by the Video Assistant Referee, or VAR for short.

VAR still managed to ruin my Christmas football, and I’ll bet it did yours.

On Sunday evening, after the biggest VAR travesties took place at Anfield, ‘Even though I’m a Liverpool fan’ was trending at #4 on Twitter in the United Kingdom. Even the home fans, bereft of Premier League titles, having witnessed their team being assisted by today’s decisions, took to the social media platform to complain about VAR.