Pro Ref admits VAR error as ex-referee says Oliver should have reviewed City's derby winner

Pro Ref, the body formerly known as PGMOL, has admitted officials made an error of judgement in allowing Erling Haaland’s winning goal to stand during Manchester City’s victory over Manchester United at Old Trafford, and confirmed a formal review of the incident will take place.

Haaland converted from Josko Gvardiol’s cross, but the build-up immediately drew controversy. The linesman initially flagged for offside, only for VAR to overturn the decision, ruling that Enzo Fernandez had not interfered with play and that Patrick Dorgu’s boot kept Haaland onside.

In a statement, Pro Ref acknowledged the shortcoming directly: “The on-field decision was offside against Erling Haaland — that was checked by VAR and he was found to be in an onside position. In the same attack, it was established that Enzo Fernandez did not play the ball and therefore that makes any offside offence subjective, however, on this occasion, the VAR did not recognise the likely impact of his position and should have recommended an on-field review. Contact has been made with Manchester United this evening to acknowledge what we deem is an error of judgement.”

Former Premier League referee Graham Scott, who officiated in the top flight for a decade, told The Athletic that it “would have made more sense” for referee Michael Oliver to be directed to the pitchside monitor to assess the incident “in its entirety.” Scott also acknowledged the pressures officials face, noting it may have been a reasonable call for the VAR team “not to intervene unless absolutely necessary” — though he stopped short of fully defending the outcome.

Middlesbrough head coach Michael Carrick, whose side were the opponents in the derby, expressed deep concern about what the episode revealed about the current officiating framework. “Confused, not even confused — we’ve put things in place to help referees’ decisions, screens, referees in an office somewhere,” Carrick said after the match. “It’s more worrying about if that’s the interpretation about football. If we’ve got people in place that are meant to understand the game of football, or not interfering with play or impacting an attack, throwing your body at it with a defender next to him, it’s really worrying.”

The admission from Pro Ref is significant, as the governing body rarely issues public statements conceding officiating mistakes. The review is expected to examine both the VAR process and the criteria used to determine whether a player’s movement constitutes interference with play — a distinction that has long been a source of debate among coaches, players, and supporters.