Hackett: This may be real reason VAR lines used in Newcastle controversy
Steve Bruce can have no complaints after an intervention from VAR meant Newcastle United were denied a penalty against Aston Villa.
That is according to ex-FIFA and Premier League referee Keith Hackett, speaking exclusively to Football Insider as Bruce raged at the incident.
Newcastle were awarded a penalty when Emiliano Martinez fouled Callum Wilson with 15 minutes to go.
However, the decision was reversed when Wilson was adjudged to have been offside when he was played in behind.
As quoted by Chronicle Live, Bruce questioned why lines were drawn to determine whether Wilson was onside.
“It was offside,” Hackett told Football Insider correspondent Connor Whitley.
“Steve Bruce makes the comment ‘Last week we didn’t see the lines and this week we do’. I understand why last week we didn’t see the lines and this week we did. Last week, the system was very clear and now there’s confusion.
“What you have is, a thin line to begin with. That acts as the datum and tells you which part of the body is offside. What they’ve done, is taken the broadcast line, which is a thicker line, and brought that into play. When the two meet, that’s when offside is not given and the benefit of the doubt is given to the attacker.
“What we saw, this will not overcome the conflict of the offside. The reason they have displayed the lines on the screen was to demonstrate that the two lines didn’t come together and therefore offside was given.”
Newcastle remain winless this season after losing 2-0 to Aston Villa.
They were beaten 4-2 by West Ham United on the opening day of the campaign.
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