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VAR review: Was Simons’ red vs. Liverpool deserved?

Published

2 months ago

December 22, 2025

VAR review: Was Simons’ red vs. Liverpool deserved?

Dec 20, 2025, 03:12 PM ET

Video assistant referee causes controversy every week in the Premier League, but how are decisions made and are they correct?

This season, we take a look at the major incidents to examine and explain the process both in terms of VAR protocol and the Laws of the Game.

Andy Davies (@andydaviesref) is a former Select Group referee, with over 12 seasons on the elite list, working across the Premier League and Championship. With extensive experience at the elite level, he has operated within the VAR space in the Premier League and offers a unique insight into the processes, rationale and protocols that are delivered on a Premier League matchday.

Tottenham Hotspur 1-2 Liverpool

Referee: John Brooks
VAR: Stuart Attwell
Incident: Possible red card
Time: 30th minute

What happened: Tottenham’s Xavi Simons was late with a challenge on Virgil van Dijk. Referee John Brooks’ original decision was a yellow card for a reckless challenge.

VAR decision: After VAR review, the referee overturned the original decision of yellow card to Simons and issued a red card for serious foul play.

VAR review: A relatively straightforward process for VAR Stuart Attwell to recommend an on-field review to the referee, once the replays had been reviewed.

The characteristics of a reckless challenge, originally identified by the on-field referee, were not evident in the footage presented to the VAR team when reviewing the incident. Attwell would have been very uncomfortable with Simons’ action, feeling the force and speed of the contact on the back of Van Dijk’s calf endangered the safety of the center back and met the threshold for a possible red card.

Having viewed the challenge from three different angles, at various speeds and paused at point of contact, Attwell had no doubt that an on-field review was required.

Verdict: A correct and positive intervention by VAR in this situation, with Brooks also correct in overturning his original decision of a yellow card once reviewed.

Some will comment that Simons was unfortunate, with no intent and highlighting that these types of challenges can look worse in slow motion. I don’t disagree, but the nature of the contact in this challenge, on the back of the calf and with a level of force and speed, make this a dangerous one regardless.

These types of challenges are difficult to recognize as red card offenses in real time. Processing the point of contact, force and speed when two players are running in the same direction presents a challenge for the referee, and the original decision by Brooks of a yellow card was an understandable one.

Newcastle United 2-2 Chelsea

Referee: Andrew Madley
VAR: Peter Bankes
Incident: Penalty appeal for Newcastle United
Time: 55th minute

What happened: As the ball was played into the Chelsea penalty area, Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah challenged Anthony Gordon, seemingly making no contact with the ball and catching the left leg of Gordon. Referee Andrew Madley deemed it a fair challenge in real time.

VAR decision: The referee’s call of no penalty to Newcastle was checked and confirmed by VAR, with the contact from Chalobah on Gordon deemed to be side-to-side in a shielding action and the ball within playing distance.

VAR review: As with all subjective calls, the starting point for the VAR is the on-field decision and the live communication.

Madley would have seen the contact from Chalobah as normal contact, describing the ball as running out of play. In his opinion, Gordon placed his body in a position to draw and create contact from Chalobah; therefore, Gordon was trying to win a penalty as opposed to it being a foul by the Chelsea defender.

Bankes, having viewed the footage, backed the on-field decision of no penalty, and cleared the decision as correct.

Verdict: This was a foul challenge by Chalobah, and an on-field review and a penalty kick should have been the outcome.

I have some sympathy with Madley on-field, as he would have had some doubt that the level of contact, with the ball running out of play, met the threshold of a foul from his on-field position.

However, the review process by VAR would have highlighted that, despite the direction and destination of the loose ball, Chalobah made a clear, careless foul challenge on Gordon, making no contact on the ball.

It’s difficult to understand why Bankes did not recommend an on-field review to the referee in this event.

Referees are always reluctant to award fouls against defenders in these types of situations — certainly when a defender is adjudged to be guiding the ball out of play and the ball is in playing distance. However, this situation was different. All the evidence from the replays clearly indicate that this was a careless foul challenge by Chalobah, regardless of where the ball was, and an understanding that the defender was not in control of the ball at any point. A clear error had been made on-field and an OFR should have been the outcome.

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Duke staffers ‘got punched in the face’ as UNC fans stormed court after upset win, coach says

Published

1 hour ago

February 8, 2026

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Duke staffers ‘got punched in the face’ as UNC fans stormed court after upset win, coach says

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Duke Blue Devils staff members “got punched in the face” as North Carolina Tar Heels fans stormed the court in celebration of their rivalry win, head coach Jon Scheyer said Saturday.

No. 14 North Carolina topped No. 4 Duke, 71-68, after Tar Heels guard Seth Trimble hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with 0.4 seconds left. Tar Heels fans hit the court thinking the game was over but had to be corralled back to their seats once officials added less than a second back to the clock.

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Duke Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer reacts in the first half at Dean E. Smith Center on Feb. 7, 2026. (Bob Donnan/Imagn Images)

Scheyer said that some of the team’s staff members took hits during the fracas.

“For me it’s hard to talk about the game when I was most concerned just for the safety of our players after the game,” Scheyer said. “I don’t want to make it about that, because Carolina, they played a great game to win. And that’s a heartbreaking loss for our team.

“I got staff members that got punched in the face. My family, pushing people away, trying to not get trampled. That’s not what this game is about.”

North Carolina athletic director Bubba Cunningham said he apologized for the incident, but didn’t have details on any injuries.

“When they rushed the court, a number of people got knocked over,” Cunningham said. “But then we had to clear the court again. So when we normally have something like just rushing the court and the game is over, we do have a line by the benches to get people off safely.

North Carolina fans take the floor and celebrate after the team defeated Duke in the final seconds of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Feb. 7, 2026, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (AP Photo/Chris Seward)

UTAH TECH BASKETBALL PLAYER PUNCHES OPPONENT AFTER GETTING DUNKED ON IN VIRAL INCIDENT

“Obviously, if somebody got injured, that’s just really, really disappointing. We’ll do the best we can to make sure that doesn’t happen, but again, my apologies to Duke for that.”

A Duke official told multiple outlets that one person tied to the program had been injured but had no other details.

Scheyer and Duke had a similar incident happen after Duke lost to Wake Forest in 2022. Then-Blue Devils player Kyle Filipowski was shaken up after a Demon Deacon fan collided with him during their celebration.

Scheyer, who wondered in 2022 when court-storming was going to be banned, was asked whether he still believed it should be prohibited.

“Just shouldn’t have people getting punched in the face,” he said. “Shouldn’t put our players in position where they’re face-to-face with people who can do anything at that time. It just takes one reaction. Even today, I had to push people away just to try to protect our players.

North Carolina guard Seth Trimble (7) celebrates with fans after an NCAA college basketball game against Duke, Saturday, Feb. 7, 2026, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (AP Photo/Chris Seward)

“They won, they should celebrate. They want to court-storm, court-storm. But just let’s get our guys off safely, that’s it. That’s where I’m at with that.”

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Duke fell to 21-2 on the season with the loss. North Carolina improved to 19-4.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Ryan Gaydos is a senior editor for Fox News Digital.

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T20 World Cup 2026: England hold off Lokesh Bam to beat Nepal by four runs

Published

6 hours ago

February 8, 2026

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T20 World Cup 2026: England hold off Lokesh Bam to beat Nepal by four runs

England players celebrate a wicket during their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup against Nepal at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, India, February 08, 2026. — AFP

Lokesh Bam’s late fireworks proved in vain as England held on to beat Nepal by four runs in a thrilling T20 World Cup 2026 match at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai, on Sunday.

Chasing 185, Nepal began strongly as openers Kushal Bhurtel and wicketkeeper Aasif Sheikh set the tone with aggressive stroke play. The 37-run partnership was broken when Sheikh fell for seven off nine balls, dismissed by Liam Dawson.

In the final over of the powerplay, Bhurtel was dismissed for 29 off 17 deliveries, featuring four boundaries and a six, leaving Nepal at 42 for 2 in 5.2 overs.

Skipper Rohit Paudel and Dipendra Singh Airee then steadied the innings, adding a 50-run partnership to take Nepal past the 100-run mark in 12 overs. Airee looked set for his 11th T20I half-century, troubling England’s bowlers with powerful strokes.

However, Sam Curran broke the 82-run stand by dismissing Airee for 44 off 29 balls, which included six fours and a six.

Shortly after, Rohit Paudel fell to Liam Dawson for 39 off 34 deliveries, featuring two fours and two sixes, reducing Nepal to 126 for 4 in 15.3 overs.

Nepal lost further momentum as Aarif Sheikh was caught by Jofra Archer for 10 off eight balls, including a six, leaving the side at five wickets down.

Lokesh Bam fought back, hitting consecutive sixes off Archer to bring Nepal closer, with 24 runs needed from the final two overs.

In the 19th over, Mark Wood conceded 14 runs but took the key wicket of Gulsan Jha for one, leaving Nepal needing 10 runs off the last over.

Sam Curran bowled the final over, conceding five runs as Nepal fell just short. Lokesh was the standout for Nepal, scoring a quick 39 off 20 balls with four boundaries and two sixes.

Batting first, England made a poor start as opener Phil Salt was dismissed cheaply for one off two deliveries, removed by Sher Malla on the first ball of the second over.

Wicketkeeper-batter Jos Buttler and Jacob Bethell then stabilised the innings, scoring at a brisk pace with boundaries flowing freely.

However, Nandan Yadav had other plans, dismissing Buttler for a crucial 26 off 17 deliveries, including five boundaries, leaving England reeling at 43-2 in 4.3 overs.

Pressure continued to mount as England lost Tom Banton on the first delivery of the seventh over, dismissed by Sandeep Lamichhane for two off five balls.

Bethell and captain Harry Brook steadied the innings with a sensible partnership, guiding the team toward a competitive total as Bethell brought up his third T20I fifty and helped the side cross the 100-run mark.

The duo put together a 71-run partnership, which ended when Dipendra Singh Airee claimed the important wicket of Jacob Bethell.

Bethell finished his crucial innings with 55 runs off 35 balls, hitting four boundaries and four sixes, taking the team to 128-4 in 13.4 overs.

England were five wickets down when Airee struck again, taking the wicket of Sam Curran. It was Airee’s second of the match, and Curran was dismissed after scoring just two runs off eight deliveries.

Brook continued to pile on runs for his side, taking the total past the 150-run mark and earning a well-deserved sixth T20I fifty.

However, after reaching his milestone, Nandan Yadav claimed the key wicket, ending the captain’s valiant innings of 53 runs off 32 balls, which included four boundaries and three sixes.

Will Jacks remained unbeaten, playing a fiery 18-ball 39 that included one boundary and four sixes, while Archer was run out for one off three deliveries.

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