With controversy surrounding VAR’s decision to rule out Alistair Johnston’s goal for Celtic, clarification on social media has confirmed why the goal was disallowed.
With James Forrest involved in the build-up to the goal, the Scottish winger’s foot was offside, not Johnston’s, easing confusion as Johnston himself was not offside when he slotted past Dimitar Mitov.
The complex nature of VAR means that at times when goals seem perfectly fine, they are ruled out without explanation until still images are shown.
— Inside The SPFL (@AgentScotland) March 16, 2024
This is yet another example of a situation where a lack of communication from VAR has led to confusion.
With fans at the stadium confused as to why Johnston was ruled out as offside, clarifying that it was actually Forrest who was in fact in an offside position, instead of simply stating ‘offside,’ makes the situation clearer.
It is a clear flaw with VAR, as situations like these continue to arise and will do so until a new way of communicating is revealed.
Despite the 3-1 win, every goal will prove crucial in such a tight title race, and it is clear why fans are so frustrated at even one goal being disallowed, as that could be the difference at the end of the season.
