In the debate about the red card for Mats Hummels in Borussia Dortmund’s Bundesliga game against RB Leipzig, former referee Jochen Drees defended the intervention of the video assistant. In terms of rules, the decisive factor is where the first contact occurred that caused the attacker to fall, said the 53-year-old responsible for the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) area. “This was clearly the case in the present duel between Hummels and Openda shortly before the penalty area, so that the correct decision was a direct free kick and a red card because an obvious goal chance was thwarted,” Drees told “Kicker” (Monday).
National soccer player Hummels fouled Lois Openda in the 2-3 win against Leipzig on Saturday. Referee Sven Jablonski awarded a penalty and a yellow card for Hummels. After video referee Pascal Müller intervened, the decision was changed to a free kick and a red card for the defender because the foul occurred outside the penalty area. The proof of this was provided by “the camera settings ’16 up’ and ‘reverse left’,” explained Drees. Dortmund had to play 75 minutes outnumbered. Therefore, “the correct decision is a direct free kick and a red card for thwarting an obvious scoring opportunity.” This is a “so-called black and white decision”.
However, some experts were unable to understand his reasoning. “The intervention is criticized not only externally but also internally,” wrote former top referee Manuel Gräfe at X: “Not from Drees, but from many others. On TV, people often stopped too early, the timing of contact from behind was chosen incorrectly, and fouls were more likely to be on the line.” Different arguments have already been made in comparable situations: “The VAR line is still missing.”
Heynemann also criticizes VAR
Criticism of the VAR intervention also came from former FIFA referee Bernd Heynemann. “Such bean-counting with a magnifying glass is damaging to football,” said the Magdeburger in his column for the “Kicker”. For him, Jablonski’s decision was understandable. Then the scene in the Cologne basement was dissected millimeter by millimeter and the foul was moved out of the penalty area, although even the slow motion was not clear, said the 69-year-old. “In such cases, the field decision should definitely stand and the decision-making power should not be claimed by the cellar,” said Heynemann.
Aside from the debate about Hummels, Edin Terzic seemed more combative than depressed after the game. Although his team suffered another setback in the 3-2 defeat against RB Leipzig and the pressure on the Dortmund football teacher continues to grow, the questions about his mood and future did not particularly excite him.
“It’s a really tough test right now. But you felt energy, courage and faith,” said the 41-year-old, commenting on the unfortunate defeat when he was outnumbered. Despite all his frustration, he viewed the courageous performance as an indication of an intact internal climate: “It’s about leading the way, getting up again and getting the boys to follow me. That’s what they did today.”
