Howard Webb Reveals VAR Mistake in Manchester Derby
Howard Webb has admitted that VAR never even checked whether Enzo Fernandez was offside in the build-up to Erling Haaland’s controversial winner in the Manchester derby – and says the officials involved will not take charge again until after the international break.
The Premier League’s chief refereeing officer spoke on the first edition of this season’s ‘Match Officials Mic’d Up’ and did not hide his frustration at the mistake by VAR Matt Donohue and assistant Blake Antrobus.
“I was really disappointed with this outcome. We all are,” Webb said, confirming what most inside Old Trafford suspected the moment the replays rolled. “None more so than the officials themselves. They take a lot of personal pride in what they do and they're obviously hurting now, having fallen short in this situation.”
Haaland thought he had settled a tight derby in the 60th minute at Old Trafford, finishing at the back post from Josko Gvardiol’s cross. The assistant’s flag went up, the on-field decision was offside, and for a few seconds Manchester United breathed.
Then came the familiar pause. A VAR check. The semi-automated offside technology showed Haaland was three centimetres onside from Gvardiol’s delivery. On that basis, the goal was awarded.
But the real problem lay elsewhere.
Fernandez had dived at the ball in a central position, drawing defenders and clearly involving himself in the move. Manchester United centre-back Lisandro Martinez initially tracked Haaland, then broke off to close down Fernandez, leaving Haaland unmarked at the far post to score.
To many watching, the offside offence was obvious. Fernandez, in an offside position, had interfered with opponents. The VAR team, however, never examined that part of the phase.
On Match of the Day, former England striker Wayne Rooney voiced the disbelief shared by United fans. He said that “to not see that and recognise that Enzo Fernandez was in an offside position... anyone who has played the game at any level understands that and to get it so wrong is baffling.”
The Mic’d Up audio laid bare how it happened. At no point did Donohue or Antrobus discuss whether Fernandez was offside. Their attention stayed locked on Haaland and whether Fernandez had touched the ball to create a new phase.
“The VAR gets super-focused on Haaland,” Webb explained, revealing he had already contacted Manchester United to share the audio and video. “He establishes he's onside, he thinks that's a good goal.
“He doesn't truly evaluate the full impact of Fernandez's position. He has a look to see if he touches the ball, because then that relates to potentially knocking it to Haaland, who goes on to score.
“In that moment, he gets tunnel vision. It's down to the rest of his team to pull him out of that tunnel, and unfortunately, that didn't happen on this occasion.”
The semi-automated system did its job on the Norwegian’s position. The human element failed to apply the law to Fernandez’s involvement. No full appraisal of the offside interference took place.
“What looks like a really clear subjective offside, because Fernandez doesn't touch the ball but still clearly impacts [the play but] doesn't get identified, and it's really disappointing,” Webb said. “This goal should've been disallowed. And highly unfortunately, it wasn't, and we'll review it, reflect upon it, and try to take the learning forward to prevent this unusual type of error from happening again.”
For Donohue and Antrobus, that means a spell out of the spotlight. For the league, it is another high-profile VAR storm in a marquee fixture – and another test of whether “learning” can finally translate into consistency when the next title-shaping call arrives.
