Aston Villa manager Unai Emery has openly criticized the VAR decision that nullified Tammy Abraham’s goal during their recent match against Brentford. Abraham appeared to have scored his first goal since returning to the club, leveling the game shortly after half-time. However, after a VAR review, the goal was disallowed.
The incident unfolded as Villa trailed 1–0 and Brentford had a player sent off. Abraham’s strike came soon after the restart of the second half, seemingly putting Villa back in contention. Yet, VAR ruled the ball had gone out of play earlier in the attacking sequence, specifically when Leon Bailey attempted to keep the ball in play on the opposite side of the field. Despite TV replays failing to conclusively prove that the ball fully crossed the line, the officials upheld the decision.
The Premier League’s official Match Centre explained the ruling via Twitter: “After VAR review, the referee overturned the on-field decision of goal to Aston Villa – with the ball deemed to be out of play within the attacking possession phase (APP).” The referee later confirmed this, stating: “After review, the ball is factually out of play, so the restart will be a throw-in to Brentford.”
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Following the match, Emery expressed his frustration with the review process. “I think it is not fair. The referee is not watching it,” he said. “Maybe there are a lot of actions and circumstances that can change a goal. I accept it completely. For me, it is not fair, but I accept it.”