Exclusive – Paul Lambert gives the reasons why he is no fan of VAR

Paul Lambert has already shared his thoughts on the increasingly close and sure to be dramatic title race in the Scottish Premiership this season. The former Celtic captain, a Champions League winner with Dortmund and a manager of several clubs south of the border, also talked exclusively to The Celtic Star about the comparatively low standard of refereeing in Scottish football and the reasons why he is not a fan of VAR.

Refereeing in Scotland is often a big talking point, especially considering we get more than our fair share of controversial decisions over here. Take theRangers‘ Dujon Sterling’s red card against Aberdeen last Tuesday for example. You couldn’t avoid the discussions on it if you tried.

Paul Lambert had a fantastic career in Scotland, winning many pieces of silverware with Celtic, but was retired by the time VAR was introduced into the sport. He has plenty experience with it as a spectator though, and it’s safe to say, he’s not a fan.

Lambert told The Celtic Star exclusively via BoyleSports who offer the latest SPFL Betting: “I think you let the game go. I went to Leicester vs Leeds a couple of months ago and it was a great game. No stoppages, nothing. It was just end-to-end stuff, and it was great. I’ve been to games in Germany and yeah, it’s been used, but not as much controversy as there has been in the UK. I think it’s how you use it, but I think we’re creating an absolute problem with it.”

A lot of people would agree with the statement that it’s not the technology itself but rather those responsible for making the decisions. Lambert touched on the standard of refereeing and how it’s much better on the other side of the border than it is in Scotland.

He said: “I think the Premier League is really good. If they’re left alone to it and don’t have any interference from VAR, then I think the guys are really good there. They’re top level. Some of the Championship guys are pretty decent as well. I think the lower leagues could probably get better with it. But obviously, with finances and whatever, it’s very tough.”

Will we ever see an improvement in the standard of refereeing in Scottish football? It’s tough to say. Even if we, as fans, think that some decisions are wrong, the governing bodies seldom if ever agree with us.

There is a process in place for determining if a VAR decision was wrong, and the VAR reviews post-match are made by the VAR Independent Review Panel (IRP). At the end of November, the IRP reviewed all 407 VAR checks that had been made up to that point in the Scottish top-flight. Out of those 407 checks, they found that only three decisions were incorrect.

Perhaps this implies that VAR and referees aren’t as bad as we think they are, but I’m not so sure considering clubs are even taking a stand, whether we agree or not.

For example, at the end of December, Dundee’s match against Aberdeen was postponed after the referee carried out a pitch inspection. Despite the pitch seeming fine and the forecast being clear, the referee decided to call off the game and Dundee were frustrated, writing to the SFA for clarification and stating that they were “extremely unhappy” with the actions of the referee.

More recently, and acting like spoilt brats, theRangers wrote to the SFA to request that Willie Collum not referee their games after they were denied a so-called penalty against Celtic in the last Glasgow Derby. Collum sought not to interview one, even though the ball appeared to strike Alistair Johnston’s hand, however it was all immaterial as it was also offside so it clearly was never going to be a penalty. Anyone with eyes could see that, but they still demanded the audio and that Willie Collum stay far away from Ibrox.

Referee William Collum reacts during the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qualifier match between Germany and Armenia at Mercedes Benz Arena on September 05, 2021.. (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)

Despite this, Collum refereed their game against Ayr United, and Phillipe Clement made his disagreement with the club’s request to the SFA known to the media. There are more examples of football clubs in Scotland taking a stand against referee decisions they believe to be wrong. Collum did his best to stay onside, failing to send off a Rangers player then booking Scott Brown, another former Celtic captain, for his protests.

So maybe we can take some pointers from other leagues around the world and work to improve our refereeing and VAR systems? Only time will tell, I suppose, but I wouldn’t count on it…