Connect with us

Blog

Why VAR refrained from interfering in the horrifying Jefte Rangers red card decision

Published

on

VAR was unable to overturn the red card given to Jeffre during Rangers’ defeat to Dynamo Kyiv.

After a second caution in the second half, the 20-year-old Brazilian was substituted out.

Replays revealed there was nothing wrong with the challenge as the player had won the ball fairly, even though Jefte was declared to have elbowed his opponent in the face during an aerial duel at Hampden.

Despite this, Rangers manager Philippe Clement called the decision made by referee Marco Guida to dismiss Jefte for a second yellow card “the worst in 30 years.”

Replays of the Champions League third round qualifying match, which the visitors won 2-0, showed Jefte’s innocence, but VAR was unable to intervene in the situation.

This is due to the fact that a second yellow card is not a decision that VAR can reverse.

Only four “match-changing scenarios” are eligible for VAR intervention: goals and offences leading up to goals, penalty calls, straight red card calls, and mistaken identity.

For that reason, after Guida’s decision to dismiss Jefte for a second yellow at Hampden, there was nothing the VAR officials could do.

The Champions League guidelines regarding the use of VAR state: “In four match-changing scenarios—goals and offences leading up to goals, penalty decisions and offences leading up to penalties, direct red card incidents, and mistaken identity—the Video Assistant Referee will only step in when they have the evidence for a clear and obvious mistake.

“This includes goals scored after a foul during the attacking phase, or from an offside position.”

According to James Tavernier, the referee had explained why Jefte had been sent off for elbowing. “I spoke to him [the referee] as it happened,” he declared.It was an elbow in the face, he clarified.

“When I think back on it during the game, he rises really early. It didn’t even seem like a free kick to me. I assumed he rose early. What he’s done has no malicious intent.

A 50/50 ball is being thrown into the air. Jefte rises very early. He gives him a flying kick. I’m not sure how much communication there is. That obviously has a significant impact.”

Kris Boyd lashes out at Rangers’ Champions League suffering as the Ibrox hero rushes to rework VAR after a red card

The analyst lost all control of his rage as Dynamo Kyiv defeated the Light Blues.

Rangers’ disastrous Champions League exit made for a difficult evening for Ibrox hero Kris Boyd, who was covering the match in the Sky Sports studio.

The game was close, but referee Marco Guida controversially gave Jeffre a second yellow card, which turned the tide and put the Scottish Premiership team on the defensive at Hampden as they tried to find a way into the group stage of Europe’s top competition. Oleksandr Pikhalyonok and Nazar Voloshyn scored goals in the final ten minutes to send the Light Blues crashing out of the Champions League, taking advantage of the extra man.

And Boyd, a beloved player by Rangers supporters, was unable to contain his rage when watching the two late strikes on TV. The former striker, known as “Boyd-cam” in the studio, was heard angrily screaming “no” and raising his arms as Pikhalyonok found the net. Boyd reached boiling point once more a few moments later when stand-in Voloshyn discovered the net, yelling and hurling his pen throughout the studio.

Even though Boyd’s response after the game was more reserved, he was still perplexed by the man in the middle’s choice. “It’s beyond me how it is given as a second yellow card,” he continued. The player from Dyanmo Kyiv falls to the side, and the referee sees it and gives him a yellow card.

“I understand that VAR does not allow you to check a second yellow card, but this situation is appallingly bad.” However, you need to get over that and move on. After that, Rangers had a few more opportunities, but it seemed like they could have played all night without scoring. Dynamo scored two goals after hitting them on the counterattack.”

Big match verdict: empty seats at Hampden indicate apathy on the part of Rangers fans, and things have just gotten much worse

The city did not experience the Ibrox atmosphere as the Light Blues were eliminated from the Champions League.

a sound barrier. When Dynamo Kyiv last visited Glasgow to play Rangers, that’s what they encountered. The Ibrox punters who were there probably still have it ringing in their ears almost forty years later.

The sound was overwhelming. And generally acknowledged as one of the best stadium atmospheres ever experienced, if not THE best. It’s unbeatable for devotees of a particular vintage. The triumph over RB Leipzig on the way to the Europa League Final two years ago will be cited by the younger generation. Or the legendary victory over Parma in 1999, when big Tony Vidmar had the crowd in stitches.

However, no. When asked about the loudest roar they have ever heard while watching Rangers, many people will cite Dynamo Kyiv on September 30, 1987. That night, there were astonishingly just 44,500 in the ground. The guests, however, were unable to hear themselves think. Neither could Graeme Souness or his team in a thrilling second-leg European Cup match.

The audience contributed in that way. Against all the odds, the Rangers defeated the Dynamo team, winning 2-1 overall. Keep in mind, that team was full of USSR superstars. It was therefore hard to avoid drawing comparisons when they appeared in Glasgow’s south side last night. Here in the main stand stood Alexei Mickhailichenko, who had played for both clubs as well as Dynamo in the past.

But there’s no denying that things have changed. To begin with, the Rangers aren’t actually at Ibrox. Furthermore, the atmosphere of the recollections of ’87 was always going to be in stark contrast. Last night, Hampden was not even half full. Their brief, pre-season jaunt was bound to turn off some fans. Not to mention the customary expenses.

But what was really noticeable was how many seats were empty in the old Celtic end. Does it go beyond that? Is this fan base becoming more and more apathetic? Who can blame them if there is, considering the Ibrox debacle, a lack of transfer funds, a glaringly unbalanced and untalented squad, and an overall lack of clarity regarding the club’s true direction?

And what about last night’s noise? It never came close to matching the volume of Kyiv’s previous visit here. The teams did not make the sound of an aeroplane taking off when they came out of the Hampden tunnel. The muted cheers of the fans were drowned out by Simply the Best. In contrast to 1987, the players were responsible for igniting the crowd rather than the other way around.

There was a quiet hush over Hampden after the opening song from the home end. The players could be heard yelling at one another. Barely a second passed thirty-seven years ago without a clatter of some kind.

Even now, when you see Mark Falco score the first goal by taking advantage of a mistake made by the Kyiv keeper, you’ll get a tingling sensation in the back of your neck. And the roof fell when Ally McCoist met a cross from Trevor Francis at the Copland Road end, tricking and confusing the goalie with his header. Very tingling in the spine.

One more recollection from that Dynamo match is Souness’s fly strategies prior to the ball being kicked. Recall how he told his ground crew to close in the lines and narrow the Ibrox pitch in an effort to neutralise Kyiv’s dangerous wingers?

The way the Rangers used that move to exhaust their opponents was quite effective. Strangely enough, last night the punters were clamouring for Vaclav Cerny, the Czech wide player, to provide them some width. However, the atmosphere was further deflated when Philippe Clement chose to start him on the bench. Gers’ doctors reportedly told the Belgian that there would be too great a risk.

Rangers’ Jefte rues a missed chance

If that’s the case, though, how come Cerny, who had been tearing Motherwell to pieces over the weekend, was fired after just 55 minutes? To the delight of the home support, he was eventually introduced at halftime.

And after Jefte’s absurdly harsh red card, they finally raised their voices and stood up in 53 minutes, expressing their sheer frustration and defiance. They stood up once more after James Tavernier won a corner, and Clement motioned for them to stand up with his arms.

They were definitely needed by their team. However, they were unable to stop Dynamo from scoring twice in the latter stages of the game to send Rangers reeling. The farewell had a significant effect. However, in the clear, their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League have been dashed before the play-off phase.

The mood was set in 1987 when Souness and his team believed they could win the European Cup heading into their match against Kyiv. It was an optimistic support for the Rangers. Now? Simply put, that is untrue. Actually, it’s the exact opposite. The events of this summer at Ibrox have only added to the pessimism of the punters. And the outcome from last night made it much worse.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Trending