There are pros and anti-VARs. The Goal Line Technology, she managed to make more consensus … until Thursday evening. During a play-off return match of the Europa League Conference between Fiorentina and Braga, a referee dared to refuse a goal yet validated by the Goal Line after consulting the images of the VAR (video assistant referee). He is French and his name is Benoît Bastien.
On a cross at the entrance to the Portuguese area, Cabral believes to offer the equalizer by winning the ball with a header. No worries from the French referee’s side which means his watch vibrated, confirming the goal for Fiorentina. The joy of the Italians is however short-lived. Barely a few moments, we see Benoît Bastien put his hand to his ear to communicate with the assistant referees.
We are then in the 49th minute of this match and for two long minutes, it is a total blur. The Frenchman then decides to go and consult the images to form his own opinion. The viewing stretches in length and, obviously, the images do not confirm that the ball has entirely crossed the goal line.
After another four minutes of waiting, the referee takes a historic decision: he invalidates the Goal Line’s decision and refuses the Italian goal. Yet on the 3D images of Goal Line Technology, the ball did cross the line for a few millimeters. Why did Benoît Bastien refuse the goal? Has the Goal Line been the victim of a computer bug? This decision raises a ton of questions that opponents of tech assistance are sure to grapple with.
In the end, this decision had no consequence on the qualification of the Italians. Victorious in the first leg 4-0, Fiorentina, who were trailing 1-2 before the incident, finally managed to reverse the situation by winning 3-2 with a last goal scored by a certain … Cabral, the celebration of which mimicked the gesture of recourse to the VAR.