Premier League clarify new VAR system as Arsenal have purpose chalked off towards Brentford

Kieran Tierney thought he had opened the scoring for Arsenal against Brentford, but the left-back’s strike was ruled out after the new semi-automated offsides system intervened

Arsenal’s cheers for taking the lead against Brentford were cut short when Kieran Tierney’s goal was axed by the Premier League’s new semi-automated offside tech at the Emirates on Saturday night.

Tierney looked rather sheepish as he slotted home after Ethan Nwaneri whipped in a cross, hinting that the Scotsman might’ve been ahead of the last defender. However, the on-field official initially gave it the thumbs up.

But then VAR stepped in with its new technology and cancelled out Tierney’s strike. The Gunners’ faithful let rip their verdict on the call, booing as the correct decision was flashed up.

The Premier League Match Centre took to social media to confirm: “VAR checked the referee’s call of goal – and established that Tierney was in an offside position and recommended that the goal was disallowed.”

Ahead of this weekend’s games, the Premier League had trumpeted that it would be rolling out the semi-automated offsides at last, reports the Mirror.

This high-tech solution, which was supposed to kick in after one of the international breaks in October or November, finally got its English football premiere across seven of the eight fifth-round FA Cup matches at the start of March.

The Premier League has ramped up its tech game with additional non-live testing, bringing SAOT to the forefront in England’s top division.

This system, which uses virtual offside lines and graphics along with optical player tracking, is set to enhance the viewing experience for fans at home or in the stadium.

Armed with 30 cameras around the stadium, the technology will be deployed for tight offside calls and, much like VAR, it will either confirm or suggest alterations to the decisions made by referees on the pitch.

The Premier League, in collaboration with Professional Game Match Officials Ltd and Genius Sports, has been instrumental in developing this cutting-edge tech.

Premier League chief football officer Tony Scholes, speaking back in February, hailed the system as “the most accurate and the most future-proof” on the market.