Arsenal

How Premier League would look WITHOUT VAR with Man Utd and Liverpool tumbling down table

Dave Dekker

Published

March 20, 2023

ANOTHER weekend of VAR controversy left fans up and down the country asking big questions.

Supporters of Wolves, Newcastle, Spurs and Fulham were up in arms over big calls going against their teams.

VAR decisions dominated the weekend's action — VAR decisions dominated the weekend’s actionCredit: Getty

Various calls had fans scratching their headsCredit: Rex

But Prem refs’ chiefs insist there are now far more correct decisions than wrong ones – with the vast majority of errors overturned.

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The biggest issue of all is how VAR has changed things this season.

And SunSport’s analysis of the 81 on-field calls overturned on the advice of the men in the booth at Stockley Park does show a significant impact.

We have looked at every decision and altered the results that were affected, although we have also assumed that each of the nine penalties initially awarded and then rescinded was scored.

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Without VAR, our study finds that only SEVEN teams – the top two, bottom four and 11th-placed Aston Villa, would still be in the same place in the table.

Arsenal’s current eight point lead over Manchester City would have been reduced to just three, leaving Pep Guardiola’s men very much the favourites to retain their crown.

In the fight for the other Champions League places, Spurs would be third, Newcastle fourth and Manchester United fifth, but with Brighton, in sixth but only five points behind Tottenham with three games in hand, looking seriously likely to gatecrash the elite for the first time.

Liverpool’s Champions League hopes would have been almost ended already, with Jurgen Klopp’s side currently five points better off than they would have been without the video refs.

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But at the other end of the table, Leeds would stand 12th, four points and two places better off, while Crystal Palace’s woes would have intensified with the Eagles down to 16th and just a point clear of the drop zone.