Allegri: Video Assistant Referee has led to more controversies

Bengaluru, January 8: Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri has made a remark on the Video Assitant referee (VAR) system, stating that the technology has brought more controversy rather than fair gameplay.

UEFA from the start of this season included VAR in two top European leagues, Bundesliga and Serie A, however, the technology has often faced criticism from many players and managers.

Most of the times, the allegation was of disturbing the flow in gameplay and fair judgement of the on-field referee who does not always consult with the Video referee in every appeal from the opposition.

The same kind of allegations was made in Juventus' last match against Cagliari on Saturday (January 6) where they won 1-0.

Federico Bernardeschi scored the only goal in the match and it later emerged that a foul should have been awarded to the hosts after Leonardo Pavoletti was elbowed by Juventus defender Medhi Benatia in the run of play. But the on-field referee allowed the goal which decided the fate of the match, despite appeals from Cagliari.

And Juventus manager Allegri now spoke about the incident stating that there has been consistent controversy regarding the newly introduced technology and also made a cheeky dig at his opponent team as he claimed that such allegations are arising partly because Italians enjoy controversies.

“The VAR was introduced to reduce controversies and instead they have increased, possibly because we Italians like to stoke them,” said Allegri.

“We look for controversies instead of analysing the match - Cagliari played a really good game and didn't deserve to lose.

“This is obviously the first year VAR has been put into use and next season we will have more clarity.”

“The referees are doing really well and will learn how to use it for the most eye-catching incidents. For example, it's fundamental in judging offsides.”

He added: “In every match, there a difficult decisions, sometimes they go in your favour and sometimes against. You need to be able to accept them.”

Following the win, Juventus are currently in second, one point behind leaders Napoli in Serie A.