FA Cup: Video assistance for referees backed by football bosses

Inverness won the Scottish Cup in 2015

Next season's FA Cup and Scottish Cup could feature video assistance for referees after football bosses backed recommendations to introduce trials.

The International Football Association Board, which makes the game's laws, wants experiments to take place and will make a final decision in March.

Football Association chief Martin Glenn said: "I'm happy to be part of that. We are supporters and control the FA Cup."

Scottish FA chief Stewart Regan said: "It's something I'd like to see."

Regan added that his organisation "would certainly discuss" the trials and said any move to involve the Scottish Professional Football League would have to be discussed with league organisers.

The trials would be limited to decisions on goals, red cards, penalties and cases of mistaken identity.

Video would only be used when the referee asked for assistance or when the video assistant was allowed to flag up errors.

Video decisions would be time limited and, unlike rugby, would not be replayed on big screens inside stadiums.

If the trials are successful, video assistants could come in for the 2018-19 season but not in time for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

"This is a great move. The fact people are willing to give it a go," former referee Dermot Gallagher told BBC Radio 5 live.

"We want it to supplement the referees and not replace them. We want it on key decisions - goals, penalties and mistaken identity."

What the managers think:

Chelsea manager Guus Hiddink:

"I think it's a big help already in the Premier League [goalline technology]. Any kind of help is welcome. It must not be over done. It should be used only for key situations."

West Brom manager Tony Pulis:

"If they are going to bring it in, I am all for it. I said it from the beginning, managers or clubs should have two calls a game, where they can call things back and look at it.

"I don't think you want it time after time. But if we are talking about bringing video technology closer to the bench and pitch, then we can get two calls in. One in one half and the other in the other half and hopefully that would help."

Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe:

"I don't think it is going to be clear cut. It depends on what areas of the pitch it is look at in. I would be open to it, but it does need to be thought about long and hard."

Everton manager Roberto Martinez:

"We should allow the referees to make their own decisions and manage the game. Clearly if they cannot see an incident that is something they need help with. Mistaken identity for example.

"Those sorts of decisions I always felt video technology could be helpful, but I wouldn't like to take the human error away from the game. Human error is part of football. It is a game of errors and how you react to these errors as a player and a referee should be exactly the same."

Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino:

"More technology? I doubt whether it is good for football. The good thing in football is that we can speak after the game a lot about whether it was a red card or yellow card or was it offside or not offside.

I think football needs to keep things important such as the human decision. I think football needs to keep its sense of the past."