Excelsior’s Van Donge & De Roo Stadium is the only stadium in the Eredivisie where no offside lines are drawn by the VAR, it claims. The defender of Sparta Rotterdam lost with his team to Excelsior (2-1) on Sunday; he suspects that Excelsior’s winning goal actually had to be disallowed.
“I actually didn’t want to do it, I think it’s a bit Calimero-like, but I still want to say it,” Vriends says on Monday evening at Rondo op Ziggo Sports. “About that last goal: Excelsior has the only stadium where they cannot draw a VAR line for offside, because there are no cameras where the line is drawn, something like that. So no offside check was made at all. With the last goal I thought: please take a look in that box, because it looks like offside.”
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On a pass from Redouan El Yaakoubi, substitute Troy Parrott made it 2-1 in injury time. According to Vriends, the VAR could not determine whether he was offside. “Maybe I’m talking out of my mind, but I’m pretty convinced this is the case. And I really doubt this was offside.” Marco van Basten looks up at the statement. “Then it is strange that the club is allowed to play in the Eredivisie. We all have to follow the same rules, right?”
When viewing the images, tablemate Youri Mulder concludes that it was indeed offside, although Van Basten thinks the margin is so small that he understands that play continues. In any case, Vriends hopes that lines can soon be drawn in the Van Donge & De Roo Stadium: “Sometimes it is in favor of Excelsior, other times against Excelsior, but now we are the victims and I am sick of it. ”
© Ziggo Sport. The moment of play prior to Excelsior’s 2-1.
