Mark Halsey Turns Manchester Derby VAR Row On Its Head — ‘They Should Have Stuck With The On-Field Decision’

Manchester United’s fury over Erling Haaland’s controversial winner has only intensified after former Premier League referee Mark Halsey delivered a brutal verdict on the VAR intervention that changed the game at Old Trafford.

Haaland’s second-half strike handed Manchester City a 1-0 derby victory after the goal was initially ruled offside. VAR then overturned the decision and allowed it to stand — despite Enzo Fernandez being in an offside position during the build-up.

Now Halsey has questioned why VAR intervened at all.

Speaking to The Sun, the former referee accepted that Haaland himself was onside but argued that Fernandez’s position created a crucial second issue.

“Now when we look at it, Haaland is not offside but Fernandez is offside. When the ball comes across, he’s in an offside position,” Halsey said.

Halsey Backs The Assistant Referee

Simply being in an offside position is not automatically an offence. A player must become involved in active play by interfering with an opponent or making a deliberate play for the ball.

Halsey believes Fernandez did exactly that.

“In my opinion, Fernandez does that,” he said, adding that he believed the assistant referee was correct to raise the flag.

That is where his criticism of VAR becomes particularly sharp.

Halsey argued that the decision over Fernandez’s involvement was subjective — and that should have prevented VAR from overturning the original call.

“In my opinion, it’s subjective to whether you feel Fernandez is making a deliberate play for the ball, or becoming involved in an active play and interfering with defenders.”

‘VAR Should Not Have Got Involved’

Halsey’s conclusion was unequivocal.

“If that’s the case, the subjectivity – VAR – should not have got involved,” he said.

“They should have stuck with the on-field decision of offside, which I believe was the correct call.”

The verdict comes after Manchester United were left furious by the decision, with Haaland’s goal ultimately proving decisive.

And the controversy became even more damaging for Pro Ref when the organisation itself admitted that VAR had made a mistake.

Pro Ref Admits ‘Error Of Judgement’

Pro Ref confirmed that VAR correctly established Haaland was in an onside position.

However, it also acknowledged that Fernandez’s position should have been given greater consideration and that VAR should have recommended an on-field review.

“In the same attack, it was established that Enzo Fernandez did not play the ball and therefore that makes any offside offence subjective,” the statement said.

“However, on this occasion, the VAR did not recognise the likely impact of his position and should have recommended an on-field review.”

Pro Ref subsequently contacted Manchester United to acknowledge what it described as an “error of judgement” and confirmed that the incident would be reviewed.

The admission has now added another layer to a furious derby debate.

For Halsey, however, the central issue is much simpler: the original offside decision should have been left alone.