VAR THROWS A WOBBLY!

VAR technology was branded “a shambles” last night as Juan Mata had a goal ruled out.

Mata thought he had beaten the offside trap but his celebrations were cut short when referee Kevin Friend (below) summoned VAR Neil Swarbrick for a second view.

Between them they decided Mata was ‘leaning offside’ and disallowed the goal.

But TV viewers then looked on in disbelief at half-time when BT Sport revealed the pictures used by the VAR to determine Mata’s position featured wobbly lines which weren’t even straight (top). They then showed the incident using their own graphic with a straight line (below).

‘That was a shambles,’ said BT Sport pundit Robbie Savage. ‘Offside should be clear and obvious but the lines aren’t even straight.’

Former Premier League referee Graham Poll described the incident as ‘unsatisfactory’, though insisted the right decision was reached.

‘If it proves that Juan Mata’s knee was one millimetre offside, then he’s offside,’ added Poll.

Mata said: ‘If the VAR is not clear then what do we do?’