David Moyes felt frustrated once again as West Ham faced two more contentious VAR handball decisions during their 1-1 stalemate against Aston Villa.
The Hammers were left crestfallen when a lengthy five-minute, 37-second VAR review deemed Tomas Soucek had handled the ball before it crossed the line, cancelling out their potential stoppage-time winner – a decision marking the longest ever VAR check in Premier League history.
Adding to Moyes’ dismay, an earlier VAR review disallowed a goal by Michail Antonio due to a perceived handball infringement. Reflecting on these decisions and previous instances in recent matches, Moyes highlighted a pattern of unfavorable handball rulings against his team, underlining the challenges and inconsistencies surrounding VAR decisions.
While Moyes initially refrained from elaborating on VAR, he couldn’t hide his disappointment: “Burnley last week, Freiburg, and now two today have gone against us. It’s hard to take. If VAR thinks it’s right it must be right. I think football people see things differently. We’ve had two hit people’s arms in the last week and not one went for us.”
Despite Antonio giving West Ham the lead with a well-placed header, Villa fought back in the second half, ultimately equalizing through Nicolo Zaniolo’s composed finish. Late drama ensued with a disallowed goal for West Ham, sparking controversy and frustration for Moyes, who voiced his concerns to the officials post-match.
Villa’s manager Unai Emery acknowledged the shift in momentum after West Ham’s apparent goal, praising his team’s response in the second half: “When they scored, the plan changed and in the second half we did better than in the first half. We dominated, scored the goal and tried to win the match. It’s a draw but the result is good for us.”
Amid the contentious VAR decisions, the match ended in a draw, leaving both teams with mixed emotions and highlighting the ongoing debate and unpredictability surrounding VAR in modern football.
