Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola has admitted that he is hesitant to publicly share his opinion on VAR. He expressed concerns about contradicting the club’s stance on the matter.
In an interview with the Daily Echo, Iraola stated, “I have clear thoughts. I have my opinion, but I will not say it, just in case the club does not think like I think! It is the club that decides and they take the decision they want and what is best for the league. But I have very clear ideas.”
Although discussions have taken place, no decision has been made yet. Iraola believes that now is not the time to make a final call on VAR. He added, “I think there is more time. For sure I will not be the one deciding. I will try to give my opinion.”
When asked about his personal view on VAR, Iraola said, “For me, it is fairer, the game with VAR. Even if they don’t get it correct a lot of times. But they get it more times than if it is just the referee.”
However, he acknowledged that VAR comes with its drawbacks. “But in exchange for this, you are giving a lot of things, especially the celebrations,” he explained. “Once we score a goal, we celebrate, but not a lot, because you are going backwards in your mind and saying ‘the goal comes from this pass, no offside, no foul here, it comes from the other side, no foul, yes I think it’s a goal’. Then you wait two minutes and then you say ‘I think it’s a goal’.”
Despite these concerns, Iraola believes that VAR ultimately makes the game fairer. He concluded, “But I think the game is more fair with VAR. Now we don’t remember, but they got much more things wrong a lot of years ago.”
