Referees admit VAR error over Erling Haaland’s Manchester derby winner
Manchester United have received an apology after the refereeing body admitted Erling Haaland’s Manchester derby winner should not have stood. Manchester City’s 1-0 victory at Old Trafford was decided by Haaland’s 60th-minute finish, but officials later accepted that an on-field review should have been triggered before the goal was awarded.
VAR error acknowledged after derby
Haaland’s strike was initially disallowed by the assistant referee before VAR overturned that decision and ruled the City forward onside.
The later review found the key issue was not Haaland’s position. City team-mate Enzo Fernandez was offside close to the scorer and was judged to have been actively affecting play.
- Haaland scored in the 60th minute to settle the match 1-0.
- The flag went up before VAR approved the goal.
- Officials accepted Fernandez’s offside involvement had not been properly assessed.
- An on-field review should have been recommended to referee Michael Oliver.
- Manchester United were apologised to for what was described as an error of judgement.
Haaland expected reversal
The Norway striker said he was surprised by the original offside call, insisting he rarely strays beyond the last defender. He said he spoke to Oliver because he took the flag personally, given his confidence in his own movement.
Haaland then looked towards City boss Enzo Maresca, who gave him a thumbs-up from the technical area. That signal convinced the forward the decision would be changed and he began preparing to celebrate.
Asked about the flag immediately after the goal, Haaland said he had seen a deflection and wondered whether another player’s touch might have affected the call.
Numbers underline striker’s timing
Haaland has made avoiding offside a major part of his game since arriving in England. His offside rate has fallen sharply from his Borussia Dortmund days, while he did not receive a single offside flag across five World Cup matches during the summer.
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Offsides per 90 minutes at Borussia Dortmund | 0.55 |
| Offsides per 90 minutes at Manchester City | 0.2 |
| Premier League players caught offside more often over the last two years | 43 |
| World Cup matches without an offside call | 5 |
Haaland has previously said he started practising runs behind defences at Bryne when he was 13, working on the detail with his father. He believes video technology has reinforced that discipline, arguing that VAR leaves no margin for a wrongly timed run and confirms that he is almost never offside.
What happens next
The refereeing body has promised a full examination of the Old Trafford incident as it looks to avoid another failure involving a subjective offside decision.
City keep the derby points and Haaland’s goal, while United are left with an official acknowledgement that the decisive intervention should have been reviewed at the pitchside monitor.
