In an unprecedented event, the second half of the Premier League match between Tottenham and Nottingham Forest on Monday night commenced without the use of Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology. The interruption was due to a fire alarm that went off at Stockley Park, where the VAR hub is located.
The Premier League confirmed that until further notice, VAR would not be in operation for this particular match. This announcement came via a social media post which stated: "The match will be operating without VAR until further notice due to a fire alarm at the VAR Hub at Stockley Park."
Sky Sports relayed this news during their coverage of the second half of Monday night's game. However, within five minutes, it was reported by Sky Sports' commentary team that those within Stockley Park had resumed their positions and normal service had been restored. A follow-up post confirmed: "VAR is now back up and running." Fortunately, there were no major incidents requiring review during this brief outage.
Earlier use of VAR technology
Before this unexpected interruption, however, there was an instance where VAR played a crucial role in determining the course of play. Chris Wood from Nottingham Forest thought he'd doubled his team's lead with his strike but it was subjected to scrutiny by semi-automated technology.
A social media update read: "VAR checked the referee’s call of goal – and established that Wood was in an offside position and recommended that the goal was disallowed." Thus confirming Wood's offside position leading to disallowance of his goal.
Impact on match outcome
Despite these challenges with technology usage during playtime, Nottingham Forest managed to secure a significant 2-1 victory over Tottenham. This win has bolstered their chances for qualifying for Europe next term. Richarlison's late goal could not salvage anything for Spurs, who are currently struggling in the 16th position.
This result is likely to increase pressure on Tottenham's manager, Ange Postecoglou. His position may come under threat at the end of the season due to Tottenham's poor performance in the Premier League.
However, there is still hope for Spurs as they prepare for a showdown with Bodo/Glimt in the semi-finals of the Europa League. Despite their current league standing, they have a chance to end this season with silverware.
