Stood Down: VAR Officials Dropped After Manchester Derby Error That Cost United the Derby

The two VAR officials at the centre of Sunday’s Manchester derby controversy have been stood down from this weekend’s Premier League fixtures after the sport’s refereeing body admitted the goal that gave Manchester City their 1-0 victory at Old Trafford should not have stood.

Matt Donohue, who served as VAR for the match, and his assistant Blake Antrobus will not be appointed to any Premier League games this weekend — a consequence that will extend at least until after the international break. Donohue was also left out of this week’s Carabao Cup appointments. The decision was made by Pro Ref chief refereeing officer Howard Webb and the management team.

Pro Ref — the body that oversees Premier League officiating — issued a statement acknowledging that awarding Erling Haaland’s 60th-minute winner had been an “error of judgement.”

**What Happened at Old Trafford**

Haaland turned in a shot at the back post from Josko Gvardiol’s cross in the 60th minute. On-field referee Michael Oliver initially disallowed the goal, ruling Haaland offside in the build-up. Donohue’s VAR review then overturned that decision, finding that Haaland had been played onside by Manchester United defender Patrick Dorgu’s boot.

The problem was not Haaland’s position.

It was Enzo Fernandez. The City midfielder had lunged to head the ball in a central position from an offside position — in clear view of the VAR screens — before Haaland got his touch. The argument, backed by former players, coaches and technical experts across the sport, is that Fernandez’s involvement directly influenced the actions of United’s Lisandro Martínez and goalkeeper Senne Lammens, both of whom reacted to Fernandez’s attempted header. Under the laws of the game, a player in an offside position who interferes with play — including by affecting the actions of opposing players — should be ruled offside.

Pro Ref conceded on Monday that it had been an error for Donohue not to send Oliver to the pitchside monitor to make a judgement on whether Fernandez’s involvement constituted interference. Instead, Donohue cleared the goal remotely without referring the Fernandez question to the on-field referee for a look at the screen.

City won 1-0. Manchester United were left without a point — and without a legal recourse.

**The Reaction**

The verdict from across the game has been damning in its consistency.

Wayne Rooney, speaking on Match of the Day 2, was blunt. “I’m just so sick of this VAR, I think it’s horrendous. It takes all the emotion off the game, the energy the game’s played with, and to not see that and recognise Fernandez is in an offside position — anyone who’s played the game at any level understands that and knows that he’s in an offside position — to get it so wrong, it’s just baffling.”

Michael Carrick, speaking earlier, said it was “worrying” for football. Jay Bothroyd called for the officials to be formally reprimanded on Sky Sports News’ Ref Watch programme. Peter Schmeichel called for VAR to be scrapped entirely. Former referee Dermot Gallagher, while noting that the officials “beat themselves up” over errors, acknowledged the decision would be scrutinised intensely.

Howard Webb is set to address the incident publicly when he appears on the ‘Match Officials: Mic’d Up’ programme on Sky Sports and TNT Sports on Tuesday — the most prominent public accountability exercise available to the refereeing body in the wake of a decision that has consumed the Premier League’s opening weeks of the season.

**The Broader VAR Crisis**

Sunday’s error lands at a moment when VAR’s public standing in the Premier League is at one of its lowest points. The technology — introduced in the Premier League for the 2019-20 season after years of debate — was designed to correct clear and obvious errors. The Fernandez situation is precisely the kind of error VAR was supposed to catch: a straightforward offside question, visible on camera, with a player in frame who should have triggered a disallowance.

Instead, it produced the opposite of its stated purpose. The goal was disallowed on the field — correctly, VAR should have confirmed — and then given, incorrectly, on review.

Donohue made his Premier League VAR debut in May 2026. He now begins his career in officiating’s most scrutinised role under the weight of one of the most controversial calls in recent memory.

For Manchester United — who have taken one point from their opening two Premier League fixtures and face a rebuilding project under new management — the loss of a derby on a goal that Pro Ref itself has admitted should not have stood is the kind of injustice that festers.

The officials have been stood down. The result stands.

SOURCE BBC SPORTS