VAR technology has taken away the soul of football according to France legend Thierry Henry.
The former Arsenal legend voiced frustrations that many football fans share with him, that VAR is ruining the passion and enjoyment seen in years prior to its introduction.
Henry said that just like players, fans don’t know when to celebrate whenever a big moment comes in the sport because of how decisions are normally overruled thanks to VAR.
“It’s a good job that I retired. Let them deal with the new technology. But where does it go? One thing also that’s very difficult for me. I used to score goals as a player and sometimes (now) you don’t even know if you need to jump. Am I jumping? Are we celebrating? Are we not celebrating? It kills a bit of the joy of the game. So, we need to find a way that we don’t kill the joy of the game and we get the right results in terms of what happened. Was it offside or not?” he said.
Further, Henry said that offside was once better before VAR came but now it’s never a nail-biting moment anymore.
“Offside is ‘easier’ although sometimes it’s one centimetre now, but it’s a matter of fact. When it comes to a matter of opinion on a penalty; do you think it’s a penalty? Or do I think it’s a penalty? That’s why it will be an endless debate.” he said.
