MLS fines Bruce Arena for criticizing VAR as phony baloney

MLS has fined New England Revolution head coach Bruce Arena for violating the Major League Soccer public criticism policy.

The decision follows New England’s match against the Columbus Crew on April 15. Arena received a yellow card in last weekend’s 1-1 draw against the Crew. The main point of contention was a lengthy VAR delay on a possible handball in the box. Ultimately, no penalty kick was awarded. The financial aspects of the fine were not released by the league.

“I don’t know why I got a yellow card at the end of the game,” said Arena in the postgame press conference.

“The 4th official was pretty useless for the entire game, and for some reason, she then voiced her opinion 98-and-a-half minutes into the game.”

“If they’re going to use their phony baloney standard of clear and obvious, why would it take that long to decide it’s not a foul? It was obviously not clear and obvious if it takes you that long to come to come to that conclusion. [It was] a poor job by the VAR.”

Not everyone is a fan of the implementation of VAR

Arena’s team played the final 25 minutes of the match down a player after Dylan Borrero was sent off. Despite the fourth official adding five extra minutes onto the match, the game was extended by nearly eight. This was seemingly because of the lengthy aforementioned VAR check. Columbus equalized late into injury time.

VAR has been a contentious topic among soccer fans all over the globe. While the technology generally helps get many major calls correct, the implementation can vary from league to league. Since introducing VAR Stateside in 2017, MLS has been under fire for lengthy delays in the action. Although correct calls are made, these interludes tend to kill the flow of matches.

Galaxy striker also publicly criticized VAR in MLS

LA Galaxy forward Chicharito also previously labeled VAR in MLS as “soft.” Speaking after a match in October, the Mexican striker was left perplexed by a controversial decision.

“I saw it and I think it’s too soft. You never see that in the Premier League or LaLiga. I don’t think it’s even a foul,” Chicharito proclaimed.

“The VAR will have to go with more decisive plays.”

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