VAR Ref Matt Donohue Set for Premier League Comeback After Controversial Haaland Decision

Matt Donohue, the VAR official who mistakenly validated Erling Haaland's winning goal in the Manchester derby, is back in action in the Premier League. Donohue and his assistant Blake Antrobus failed to spot that Manchester City’s Enzo Fernandez was offside and interfering with play during the pivotal moment at Old Trafford on September 13. This Saturday, Donohue will serve as assistant VAR when Coventry takes on Fulham. He has been absent from the last three match days but has stayed active in the EFL, officiating Championship matches including Derby vs. Wrexham and Southampton vs. Bolton. Howard Webb, the chief refereeing officer for Pro Ref, noted that Donohue experienced “tunnel vision,” concentrating solely on Haaland’s position. He emphasized that the team surrounding him should have intervened to rectify the oversight. Following the incident, Manchester United received an apology from Pro Ref regarding the erroneous VAR decision. In the 59th minute of the derby, Haaland scored after tapping in a cross, only for the goal to be initially ruled out by the assistant referee for offside. However, VAR determined that Haaland was onside, allowing the goal to stand, despite Fernandez being offside when he attempted to play the same ball. Fernandez’s actions clearly impacted the defense of United’s Lisandro Martinez, which should have led to the goal being disallowed under the rules of the game. The Premier League Match Centre explained in a statement that while Haaland was deemed onside, they acknowledged Fernandez’s offside positioning could have affected the play. They maintained that Donohue should have called for an on-field review of the situation. In a post-match statement, Pro Ref admitted to a “judgment error,” confirming that they had reached out to Manchester United to acknowledge the mistake. They stated that the VAR should have recognized the significant influence Fernandez had during the goal-scoring play. Webb expressed his disappointment with the decision, clarifying that the focus should not have solely been on Haaland’s position. He revealed that by concentrating on Haaland, the VAR neglected to evaluate the full impact of Fernandez's position, resulting in a missed opportunity to disallow the goal. Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville had predicted a public apology from Pro Ref, but the statement seemed insufficient to address the situation. He remarked on the clear interference from Fernandez, indicating that the officials had indeed made a mistake. Jamie Carragher also weighed in, stating that it was a significant error, with the officials too fixated on Haaland's position. Micah Richards added his frustrations, asserting that it was clear Fernandez was challenging for the ball, and criticized the referees for getting it wrong once again.