Pro Ref Admits VAR Mistake in Haaland's Manchester Derby Goal

The decisive moment in the Manchester derby has been officially branded a mistake.

Refereeing body Pro Ref has confirmed it was wrong to allow Erling Haaland’s winning goal to stand in Manchester City’s 1-0 victory over Manchester United at Old Trafford, admitting VAR should have sent the referee to the pitchside monitor.

The admission came just hours after the final whistle.

VAR overturn that shouldn’t have stood

On the pitch, the assistant’s flag went up. Haaland was initially ruled offside after finishing at the back post on 60 minutes.

Then came the familiar pause. VAR checked, drew the lines, and decided the City striker had actually been played onside by United defender Patrick Dorgu. The on-field decision was overturned, the goal awarded, and City celebrated in front of a stunned Stretford End.

But the focus of the controversy was not Haaland. It was Enzo Fernandez.

The City midfielder was standing in an offside position as he moved towards the ball in the build-up, attempting to play it before it ran through to Haaland. He never made contact, and that became the key point in the VAR’s decision.

The officials judged that because Fernandez did not touch the ball, there was no offside offence. Replays during the check appeared to centre on whether he had made any contact.

That, Pro Ref now concedes, was the wrong way to read the law.

Pro Ref: ‘Error of judgment’

In a statement, Pro Ref laid out where the process failed.

“Following the incident in the 60th minute of Sunday's Premier League fixture between Manchester United and Manchester City at Old Trafford, we can provide clarification regarding Erling Haaland's awarded goal.

“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. A review of the incident will take place.”

The Premier League Match Centre had earlier tried to justify the decision in a post on X, stating that Haaland was onside and that “while in an offside position, Fernandez didn't play the ball.”

That line has now been exposed as the heart of the problem.

The law that was ignored

The offside law does not require a touch to commit an offence.

A player in an offside position can still be penalised if he interferes with an opponent by:

• preventing an opponent from playing or being able to play the ball by clearly obstructing their line of vision, or
• challenging an opponent for the ball, or
• clearly attempting to play a ball which is close when this action impacts on an opponent, or
• making an obvious action which clearly impacts on the ability of an opponent to play the ball.

Fernandez, moving towards the cross and shaping to play it, appeared to affect Lisandro Martinez’s defending before the ball reached Haaland at the far post. By the letter of the law, that should have been enough to keep the original offside decision.

Instead, United were left with a goal against them and, now, an admission that the process failed.

Neville saw it coming

On co-commentary for Sky Sports at the time, Gary Neville did not hold back. He said the VAR team were “wrong” to give the goal and predicted Pro Ref would be forced into a climbdown.

“Their line is good. Fernandez is offside, and he goes to play the ball, so United are getting punished for good defending,” he argued during the broadcast.

Later, on his podcast, Neville doubled down, accusing officials of ignoring the rule and criticising the Match Centre’s explanation.

“I think they are ignoring the rule,” he said. “They are digging themselves a bigger hole [with the Match Centre statement]. I'm really surprised they put that out. They will have to retract that.”

Pro Ref’s statement did not go as far as a formal apology, but it did confirm what Neville had insisted from the moment the replays were shown: the decision was wrong.

‘Unacceptable’ – United fury

Inside the United camp, anger was raw.

Lisandro Martinez, the defender directly involved in the incident, was adamant the goal should never have stood.

“Every season the officials come to our club and spend an hour explaining the rules and they look so confident with that,” he told Sky Sports.

“Then after, five or six people [officials] doing this kind of mistake in the Premier League is unacceptable.

“We have to go home with this injustice.”

For a player who prides himself on timing and positioning, seeing that line broken not by his own error but by a misapplication of the law was always going to sting.

‘Nonsense’ – Richards and Keane weigh in

Micah Richards, the former City defender, was just as scathing about the Match Centre’s justification.

The idea that the goal was valid simply because Fernandez did not touch the ball? “Nonsense,” he called it on Sky Sports.

Asked if Fernandez was clearly attempting to play the ball, Richards was unequivocal: “One hundred per cent he is.

“I think it's been a bad day for referees and VAR.

“They got the Phil Foden decision wrong, and they got this decision wrong.

“How you can not say Enzo Fernandez is challenging for the ball – of course he is!

“I've been in that position as a defender where any slight movement can make the difference for going for the ball or not, so of course it affects him.

“I just think they've got it so wrong.”

Roy Keane went straight to the heart of the defensive argument.

“Fernandez is interfering with play. Basically, United have been punished for holding a good line. When you are in that position, you are impacting the game. You're in the middle of the box, you're going for the ball.

Their line is good. Fernandez is offside, and he goes to play the ball, so United are getting punished for good defending.”

Another mark against VAR

For Pro Ref, this is another high-profile error on a stage that tolerates very few.

They have contacted United. They have admitted an “error of judgement.” They have promised a review.

The question now is not whether the decision was wrong. That is on record.

The question is how many more nights like this the system can withstand before trust in VAR, already fragile, snaps completely.