1 day Ago By [email protected] (Jordan Blackwell)
The VAR offside decision that went against Leicester City at Crystal Palace was mentioned in multiple interviews by Steve Cooper after the game and brought up Gary Lineker on Match of the Day and his The Rest is Football podcast. But the talking is not done yet over Palace's first goal in the 2-2 draw. City have asked the Premier League for clarification over the process they conducted to reach the decision they did.
That’s despite Cooper’s initial concerns being met. When the Premier League’s Match Centre on X (formerly Twitter), created this season to give real-time details on VAR calls, first posted an image of the VAR decision, it only showed Jean-Philippe Mateta in front of Wout Faes and Caleb Okoli, with a green line to indicate he was onside. There was no clarification as to who was playing the Frenchman onside until much later in the game, when a wider angle shot showed James Justin’s outstretched leg as the point at which VAR had drawn the line, the full-back trying to block Tyrick Mitchell’s cross.
But, only one line had been drawn, not the usual two. In his post-match media interviews, Cooper requested to see a conclusive image of the VAR call. Albeit, at that point, he had not been made aware of the wide-angle shot, given the Premier League’s delay in publishing it.
However, despite that now being released, City are still not satisfied and have been in touch with the Premier League over the matter. There are suggestions that their concern is that the frame used to determine Mateta’s position is not the one from which the ball first left Mitchell’s foot. The goal came just after Stephy Mavididi had doubled City’s lead, and Cooper described it as a “real pivotal moment”, as it changed the atmosphere inside Selhurst Park.
City went on to concede a last-minute equaliser, Mateta converting from the penalty spot after substitute Conor Coady’s foul on Ismaila Sarr. A semi-automated offside decision system, first used in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, is due to be brought into the Premier League this season, but has not yet been introduced. Cooper hopes it comes quickly.
“We’re waiting for absolute clarity that he was onside,” he said after Saturday’s match. “If he is, no problem. There’s no semi-automatic system in place yet.
It’s coming and it’s coming for a reason. “But it’s not here at the moment, so it means mistakes may happen. If that’s not the case and we see the clear image, no problem.
We’ll accept it and move on. But we’re not in that place yet.” Expect more talk on the matter when Cooper sits down for his pre-Everton press conference on Thursday.
It’s a topic he will be keen to discuss. With seven points earned and only one goal conceded from his first three league starts at Sheffield United, it’s looking good for Harry Souttar to play a prominent role for the Blades this season. While the likes of Leeds, Burnley, and West Brom will be up there too, a promotion challenge looks on for Chris Wilder’s side.
It seems that no matter what happens this term, a permanent move to Bramall Lane is a possibility. Wilder has already started to drop hints, and of his own accord. Asked about Sheffield United sending goalkeeper Ivo Grbic to Turkish side Caykur Rizespor on loan, and whether that was with the idea of it becoming permanent, Wilder replied: “I think every loan is always a view to, really.
I think Souttar coming in here is a loan for him to play well and if we like what we see...
and if we don't like it then someone else potentially will like it.” Hamza Choudhury’s appearance in the squad and on the pitch at Crystal Palace extended two City records. That’s now 285 straight games (since December 2018) with at least one academy player in the matchday squad, and 147 straight games (since October 2021) with at least one academy player getting onto the pitch.
But it feels in doubt. With Kasey McAteer left out of the squad at Selhurst Park, Choudhury was the last man standing. This weekend, Odsonne Edouard is available for the first time, and Choudhury will be a contender to fall out of the squad to accommodate the loanee striker.
The latter record was always going to be under threat this term, with the sale of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall meaning City now have no academy players as regular starters, something they had with the midfielder and with Harvey Barnes before him. If deputy goalkeeper Jakub Stolarczyk had not suffered a serious ankle injury, City would probably keep the longer record intact, but he’s not due back for at least another month. However, as someone with a background in academy coaching, Cooper does pride himself on giving opportunities to young players.
Perhaps, it will be a record he wants to keep alive and so will ensure that at least one of Choudhury, McAteer, Stolarczyk, Luke Thomas or Will Alves is in the squad every week..
