2020-2021 England Referee Appointments (EPL+) [Rs]

Kamara’s red card is certainly what I’d say is a new, lower standard for England. I think it’s a red in a vacuum, but no way that gets given without VAR. And maybe not without a VAR trainer initially in Australia.

Broken record, but the training and mechanics around VAR for England is pathetic. Could Graham Scott have looked any more aggrieved at or disinterested with the process?

 

VAR doesn't even flinch at 39' when Maguire bear hugs and wrestles an attacker to the ground who was going to receive a header. 100% penalty and no delay for an official check.

Then they look at Rashford when two feet collide in the penalty area, a minute later.

Mind-boggling. Absolutely mind-boggling. You basically have deliberate cheating to stop a quality goal-scoring opportunity and no one cares. How is that not the sort of foul that VAR was designed to catch?

 

But the question is whether or not it's a miss in the EPL. I think, unfortunately, not. 100% given in MLS--no questions asked.

And the search for consistency and objective standards not only continues, it grows, because the "clearly wrong" screen for secondary decision-making has been added and is also subjective.

 

The line of vision clause definitely doesn't apply.

The obvious action which clearly impacts the ability of an opponent to play the ball is the one that would be triggering an offence here. So yes, he has to move to get to offside. Without any movement (either a "challenge," a "clear attempt to play the ball," or "an obvious action"), there's no offside offence.

I'm actually not convinced in either direction based solely off the video linked to and the still photo presented. I'd need to see the video from the same angle as the still photo to have all the relevant information. Xhaka isn't attempting to play the ball or challenging for it, so for this to be offside, you need an obvious action from the attacker (yes, that clearly exists) which impacts the ability of an opponent to play the ball. That second part of the clause seems at least a little more debatable. Did Schemichel have any chance of getting to this and, if so, did the dummying action prevent him from getting to the ball? Given that it appears Xhaka is to Schmeichel's left and not directly in front of him, I'm not sure.

Like I said, need to see the video from behind the goal to determine how close Xhaka and Schmeichel are to each other at the moment the ball passes them and Schmeichel goes to ground. In the absent of exculpatory information, I agree the call for offside should stand. But the image .5 seconds after the one posted above is the key.

 

That's the same video as posted above in the streamable link. I'd like the see the video that actually shows the still frame that was pasted above.

With that said, I have absolutely zero doubt that Xhaka is trying to get out of the way. The vital question is whether his attempt to get out of the way (which constitutes an "obvious action") impacts an opponent's (in this case Schmeichel's) ability to play the ball.

The video suggests possibly yes while the still photo makes it seem equally possible that it did not. That's why I personally think you need the video from behind the goal (same angle as the posted still photo) to get anything close to a definitive answer.