Former Blackpool boss Ian Holloway is the lastest to have a VAR hot-take following the weekend's latest controversy. Thom Malone dissects the rant.
Holloway says it's the EU's fault this time. It's a well-oiled narrative arguably started by the man in Number 10 Downing street when he was European Correspondent with the Times. Boris Johnson, when reporting from Brussels, was the original Eurosceptic, blaming all kinds of ills on the faceless bureaucrats.
Johnson was the Eurosceptic Hipster, doing it long before everyone else was. Holloway looks like the guy who believes all of the headlines on Facebook and commenting without reading.
We have, in fact, now heard it all.
Former Blackpool manager Ian Holloway says the new handball rule, VAR and all that is the fault of the EU...pic.twitter.com/vPMcJufAde— Richard Chambers (@newschambers) August 20, 2019
Geoff Shreeves starts the conversation on Sky Sports' 'The Debate', by sensibly trying to tease out the two issues of the implementation of VAR and the new handball rules.
Change that
Holloways get straight in there by saying "they should change that rule." It is called 'The Debate' after all.
"I don't think that's our boys making up that new change to the law." States the former QPR gaffer. "Our boys" is the red flag indicator that this is going to kick off.
"I think that's people telling us what we should do with our game." This is classic 'taking back control' stuff from Holloway.
"They should stop doing that." Who are 'they'? The people who write football's laws? Classic faceless bureaucrats rhetoric.
The Premier League (not the EU) introduced the new rules last May. There was even an article in the Express, so Holloway could have seen it, maybe he only read the Sun, Mail and Telegraph that day.
Then the moment he's been building up to, "I hope we get out. Brexit, that's what we've all voted for. Sort that out."
But why Ian, why do we need Brexit for the better of football-kind? "Because you cannot have someone telling us how to do our own game." Sorry, you what now?
The ramble continues on to rugby, unclear whether he means the 13-man or 15-man-code, where he claims the use of technology is "a joy." Not something regularly uttered by rugby fans of either code really.
It does lead to a relatively salient point about confusion among fans in the stands. Who all "leave on their phones". This is a contrast with rugby and cricket where the replays are shown on screens.
It's too late for a salient point though Ian because you're just blamed it all on the EU. He has gone viral and all sensible argument is long lost.
A bit like Boris and the kippers the blow has been landed, it's the EU's fault, as usual.
