VAR Officials Stand Down After Controversial Manchester Derby Decision
Matt Donohue, the video assistant referee at the centre of the controversial Manchester derby winner, has been left off Premier League duty this weekend after his role in wrongly allowing Erling Haaland’s goal to stand.
Assistant VAR Blake Antrobus has also been stood down. Both officials have been removed from the upcoming top-flight fixture list after Pro Ref, English football’s refereeing body, admitted an “error of judgement” in the VAR process that cleared the only goal of Manchester City’s win at Old Trafford.
VAR team stood down
Donohue, 37, was the lead VAR when Haaland’s second-half strike was overturned from offside to onside. He has featured in every Premier League matchweek so far this season, working as VAR for Brighton & Hove Albion’s opening-day win over Aston Villa, Sunderland’s victory against Fulham and Newcastle United’s draw with Bournemouth.
That run stops now. He has not been appointed for this weekend’s league games and is also absent from this midweek’s Carabao Cup schedule. Antrobus is in the same position.
The decision, taken by chief refereeing officer Howard Webb and Pro Ref’s management team, means neither official will be involved again until at least after the upcoming international break.
The incident that sparked the fallout
Haaland’s goal was initially ruled out on the field for offside. The Norwegian appeared beyond Manchester United full-back Patrick Dorgu when the cross came in, while Enzo Fernandez was also in an offside position as he lunged towards the ball.
The flag went up. The goal was chalked off. Then VAR stepped in.
After review, Donohue advised that Haaland was onside and that Fernandez, despite being offside, had not played the ball. The on-field decision was overturned and the goal awarded — a call that ultimately decided the derby.
On Sunday evening, Pro Ref accepted that the VAR team had misjudged the situation.
A spokesperson said the VAR “did not recognise the likely impact of his (Fernandez’s) position and should have recommended an on-field review”. In other words, referee and monitor should have been brought together at the side of the pitch, and they were not.
Pro Ref also confirmed that “contact has been made with Manchester United to acknowledge what we deem is an error of judgement. A review of the incident will take place.”
Laws, interpretation and the missed detail
The Premier League’s own guidance is clear on this type of situation: “A player will be penalised if they are clearly attempting to play a ball which is close when this action impacts on an opponent.”
Fernandez, offside and attacking the cross, was being tightly tracked by Lisandro Martinez. That duel dragged Martinez away from Haaland, leaving the City striker free at the back post to score.
During the game, the Premier League match centre outlined the VAR’s thinking: “VAR checked the referee’s call of no goal for offside – and determined that Haaland was in an onside position and recommended that the goal was awarded. The VAR also deemed that while in an offside position, Fernandez didn’t play the ball.”
The argument now is not about whether Fernandez touched it. It is about whether his clear attempt to play it — and Martinez’s reaction to that movement — affected the defending and therefore the phase of play.
That is the judgement Pro Ref has now publicly admitted was wrong. And it is the call that has taken two VAR officials off the Premier League stage, at least for the next fortnight.
