6 days Ago By Rob Swan
It’s safe to say that the arrival of VAR has changed football as we used to know it. A large number of fans across the globe would argue that the technology has actually changed the sport for the worse. In leagues across the planet, we’ve seen countless baffling decisions where referees have consulted VAR and reached bizarre conclusions.
Things appear to have improved a little bit in the years since it was first introduced, as officials have steadily grown used to using it, but wild decisions still occur. There have been so many bad VAR decisions over the years that it feels unfair focusing on one in particular, but one of the most controversial calls that we’ve seen to date involved the former Manchester United star Nani, who was playing in the United States with Orlando City at the time. GIVEMESPORT Key Statistic: Nani played 230 games for Manchester United Nani Had a Yellow Card Upgrade to Red The Portuguese winger was playing for Orlando City in a Major League Soccer clash against Columbus Crew in November 2020 when the incident occurred.
Nani appeared to win the ball following a challenge on Artur during the contest but was shown a yellow card by referee Ramy Toucan. The match official was then urged to review the incident on the pitch-side monitor by the VAR and this resulted in Nani’s yellow card being upgraded to a straight red. His teammates were left furious by the decision, while the man himself was visibly shocked and devastated.
Emotions got the better of the veteran winger, who walked off the pitch in floods of tears. Fortunately for both Nani and his team, the shocking decision didn't ultimately cost Orlando as they went on to win the match 2-1. Still, it was poor from the officials and it was soon rectified.
One fan on social media commented at the time: "Could be the worst red card I've ever seen." Another stated: "WTF has happened to our game?" And a third added: "The game is gone if that's a red. Not even a foul.
Embarrassing" Nani's Red Card Was Rescinded It's a testament to how poor the decision was that the red card was rescinded almost immediately and the call was overturned after the game. Orlando appealed the sending off and MLS's Independent Review Panel deemed it was a bad call. The rest of the world could have told them that, though.
It's not the first time VAR has helped to make a call which was later reversed. Bruno Fernandes was recently involved in a similar situation when he was sent off against Tottenham Hotspur . The dismissal cost Manchester United as they were thrashed by their Premier League opponents, but the midfielder's red card was overturned afterwards and he was available for the club's next game.
Every Premier League team has had mixed fortunes with VAR this season. Here's what all the mistakes look like. Nani remained with the Florida-based club for another year after the match, but left in 2021.
He departed having played 88 times for Orlando, scoring 31 goals and chalking up 18 assists in the process. Now, at age 38, the Portuguese winger is still plying his trade on the football pitch. Nani Now Plays For Estrela Amadora Having moved to MLS in 2019, many expected Nani to begin winding down his career with Orlando as so many other former stars had in the past.
Instead, though, he's still playing to this day and has bounced around a number of different teams over the last few years. Having left the Florida team in 2021, the man, considered to be one of the most skilful players in Premier League history , spent time with Venezia, Melbourne Victory, Adana Demirspor and has now returned to his homeland of Portugal and signed with Estrela Amadora. Nani, Milan Baros, Roque Santa Cruz and Salomon Kalou are among the veterans that are still playing football in obscure leagues.
The team were promoted to the Primeira Liga in 2023 and are currently in the middle of a relegation battle at the bottom of the table. Nani has gotten off to a slow start in his return to Portugal, with just one goal in 10 appearances for his new team, but there's still plenty of time to turn that around and they'll need him to if they're to avoid dropping out of the top flight. All statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt and accurate as of 17/11/2024.
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