David Villa slapped an opponent, and Video Assistant Referee system made sure he received a red card.
Yes. You read the title right. New York City FC forward David Villa was shown a red card. The decision was made by the Video Assistant Referee system. The incident occurred in the Desert Diamond Cup, where NYCFC are playing their preseason tournament in Arizona.
During NYCFC’s match against the Houston Dynamo, NYCFC was awarded a corner kick in the first half. Midfielder Andrea Pirlo took the kick low. Off camera, Dynamo defender A. J. DeLaGarza appears to be lying on the field.
At first look, I wasn’t sure what happened. Then replay showed the incident. DeLaGarza appears to almost bear hug Villa to get around him. The Spaniard took exception with a little slap to the face. You can watch the video here:
Video Assistant Referee Comes Into Play
This match, in particular, was one of few matches selected to test the VAR system, and the result was fairly good. The incident occurred off the ball inside of the six-yard box in the penalty area. Thanks to VAR, it showed the incident from all angles possible and gave referee Nima Saghafi the correct decision. Red card.
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By the Laws Of the Game — Law 12 to be exact — a slap to the face is reported as Violent Conduct and is a sending off offense. Saghafi got that correct.
But what I have a problem with, is the embellishment from Delagarza. Yes, he sold the slap really well by jumping three feet into the air, but there should have been some type of punishment.
Here’s another problem. As Saghafi motions the imaginary video board, Frederic Brillant appears to push Saghafi as he’s reaching for his back pocket. If I’m not mistaken, physical abuse of an official is also violent conduct is also a sending off offense. I know it’s pre-season, but yes another punishment should have been given.
Should VAR Be Implemented In MLS?
First off, let me remind you that PRO (Professional Referee Organization) hired former EPL referee Howard Webb as Manager of Video Assistant Referee operations. This could be a huge growth for the league.
But, according to Andy Edwards, contributor for NBC Sports, “The biggest stumbling block for video replay in soccer is, undoubtedly the length of time each video-assisted decision would require to be made.” In my opinion, he has a point, but if we want correct and precise calls to be made, VAR would be a necessity.
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So now I ask you. Should Video Assistant Referee be implemented in Major League Soccer? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.