Chelsea manager cries about VAR, ignores red card escape after Arsenal’s 3-1 win

Chelsea manager cries about VAR, ignores red card escape after Arsenal’s 3-1 win Chelsea complaints over disallowed goal ignore soft free-kick and missed red card for horrific ‘challenge’. Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images If you pick up today’s papers, most of the coverage of Arsenal ’s 3-1 win over Chelsea in the first leg of the Champions League quarter final at the Emirates focuses on Chelsea manager Sonia Bompastor complaining about the VAR call that ruled out her side’s first goal for a very slight touch on an Arsenal defender. There is no doubt that the decision to rule Veerle Buurman ’s goal, scored with a header after a free-kick and ruled out on the pitch by the referee before VAR backed up that decision, was a poor one.

The Times, 25 March 2026 The touch was minimal and Laia Codina did her best to buy the foul. I accept that. What has not been mentioned in the reports that have followed is that it should not have been a free-kick in the first place.

The foul was given when a Chelsea player simply sat down on the pitch after feeling even less contact than Codina had felt from Buurman. “It’s always more difficult to complain about the referees when you lose the game, but it’s not good enough,” Bompastor said . Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images “When you are playing the quarter-final of the Champions League you need to respect the women’s game more.

You need to respect the players because they work hard every week to put a good performance on the pitch. “The first goal is a goal. I don’t see with the VAR how you cannot allow that goal.