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<\/p>\nVAR checks have slowed the game down <\/p>\n
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Fulham defender Tim Ream has slammed the state of VAR in the Premier League, demanding that there must be an improvement on the \u201cconstant standing around waiting for decisions\u201d currently afflicting the game.<\/p>\n
VAR has been a source of debate and, at times, frustration ever since its introduction to the Premier League in August 2019 but scrutiny and online bile has grown in recent weeks following a number of controversial incidents.<\/p>\n
A series of perceived high-profile blunders, which arguably came to a head in Arsenal\u2019s match with Newcastle last weekend, have put the league\u2019s officiating body, the PGMOL, under increasing scrutiny.<\/p>\n
And centre-back Ream revealed a huge dissatisfaction among players with how video refereeing is dictating play and sucking the joy out of football.<\/p>\n
Speaking on his podcast, The American Dream with Tim Ream<\/em>, the USA international said: \u201cWhere do you even begin with it? I don\u2019t even know where you begin anymore. Because, again, it just takes the emotion out of the game. There\u2019s the constant just standing around waiting for decisions. There\u2019s got to be a better way.<\/p>\n \u201cBut we\u2019ve been saying this for three years now. Right? I know VAR has been in place for three or four years. I don\u2019t remember.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd why are we just saying \u2018oh, it needs to be refined\u2019? We shouldn\u2019t even be at this point. Like it does need touching up, it does need refining, but there\u2019s just so much.\u201d<\/p>\n Tim Ream is frustrated at how VAR is currently being used in the game <\/p>\n In addition to the scrutiny surrounding VAR, the quality of on-pitch refereeing has also been criticised by fans and the media. <\/p>\n Ream acknowledges how tough being a top-level referee is but wants to see standards improve and believes having ex-players in key roles could help things.<\/p>\n \u201cThe referees, they do have a hard job,\u201d he added. \u201cI do not envy being a referee. But this is another conversation that we\u2019ve had within the team: do they need an ex-player that played in the Premier League, at that level, to be a referee or be a VAR, would that be a solution?<\/p>\n \u201cI mean, listen, I refereed when I was 13 or 14 years old and I can tell you that 30 to 40 parents on the sidelines suck. So 20,000 people to 50,000 people in a stadium cannot be a great situation for referees, right? That\u2019s for sure. Again, that\u2019s difficult for them.<\/p>\n \u201cBut yeah, I think that we\u2019ve got to come up with something, whether it\u2019s more training, better training, more intensive training. But how do you replicate that other than them making mistakes and learning from them? Unfortunately, that\u2019s causing a lot of issues within the league.\u201d<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/static.independent.co.uk\/2023\/11\/09\/16\/SEI178012127.jpg\")
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