England boss Gareth Southgate criticises impact of VAR on fans at games

England manager Gareth Southgate has criticised the video assistant referee system for the negative impact it has on match-going fans.

The VAR officials failed to change the decision when Liverpool's Luis Diaz had a goal wrongly flagged for offside in a 2-1 defeat at Tottenham last Saturday.

Reds boss Jurgen Klopp has since called for the game to be replayed.

"I was always brought up as a kid that the referee's decision was final," said Southgate.

"You might agree or disagree but we have to get on with it."

Southgate explained why he feels a lack of enthusiasm for VAR on the day he announced his England squad for games against Australia and Italy.

He nevertheless accepts football is "unlikely to go back to a world where we don't have technology as part of that decision-making process".

Elaborating on his feelings towards VAR, Southgate added: "All I would say is everybody used to go to the pub and moan about the ref and they still go to the pub and moan about the ref.

"So I'm not sure what we've resolved, really.

"When I am at games I am always conscious that the only people who don't know what is going on are the people who have paid to go. I find that really difficult.

"I am sitting in the stadium next to people and I am lucky as I normally get a free ticket and other people pay a lot of money and haven't got a clue or are on the phone to someone at home asking what's going on.

"The frustration, you can feel it in the stadium, you can feel the view.

"I know if we didn't have it people would go back to, 'well this could be resolved', but when I am in the stadiums my sense is they don't necessarily want 14 minutes of added time or a decision by something that they are not totally across the process of."

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