It was a very interesting AFC Champions League match. The reason why I asked Shandong Taishan to be careful is because the VAR video assistant referee on the field was so wonderful that it seemed like he wanted to win more than the home team players and coaches, and couldn't wait to help Yokohama Mariners win the game. This VAR video assistant referee's calls were too much and too grabby. Especially at the end of extra time, he intervened recklessly to help the home team Yokohama Mariners win the game.
He intervened in the game with VAR three times:twice for Yokohama Mariners penalties and once for a red card for a Bangkok United player. If VAR's intervention was justified, it was just that the first two interventions were so inexplicable that even the referee couldn't stand them.
In the first half of overtime, in the 100th minute of the match, the home team kicked a corner kick and an attacking player fell to the ground while being pulled by both players (below). After play proceeded normally, the Yokohama Marinos players did not indicate that the opponent had committed a foul. With that, play continued for about a minute before the VAR Video Assistant Referee intervened - alerting the visiting player to pull down the home player and judging the penalty kick.
However, the referee went to the pitch to watch the video replay himself and decided it was a normal defensive action and did not penalize the penalty. Bangkok United got away with it, but the Video Assistant Referee didn't give up. In the 107th minute of extra time, a Bangkok United defender intentionally tripped the Yokohama Mariners (below).
The referee took out a yellow card warning on the spot. However, after -1½ minutes, the VAR again reminded the referee that it was a red card action. So the referee went back to the pitch and found out that it was nonsense because the Bangkok United player who committed the foul was not the last defender (below) and the action was not a red card action at all.
So the referee still didn't take the video assistant referee's advice. However, it wasn't over yet! In the last minutes of the game, the video assistant referee finally contributed - it was the last penalty kick.
The penalty kick was quite a story! The game was in the 117th minute when a home player signaled a foul by a visiting player to stop a cross. The home players then gathered around the highlighted ball, but the referee's first call was for a corner kick. The VAR video assistant referee then immediately intervened.
In the 118th minute, after communicating with the video assistant referee, the referee determined that it was a free kick outside the penalty area (above). The Yokohama Mariners quit and continued to rally around the penalty kick. Surprisingly, the VAR video assistant referee continued to communicate with the referee that it was a penalty kick.
Finally, in the 120th minute, the referee succumbed to the VAR video assistant referee's opinion and was forced to recognize the penalty kick as valid. It was with this goal that the Yokohama Mariners killed off their opponents and advanced.
It was a very outrageous intervention by the video assistant referee, trying to send warmth to the home team by all means, which can be described as blatant support and help to the home team. So take precautions when Shandong Taishan play Yokohama Marinos in the next round. This kind of VAR is more than a score in the center!
