Keith Hackett has expressed his hope that the appointment of Martin Atkinson as the new Scottish FA VAR manager will lead to improved VAR performance in Scotland. The controversy arose during Celtic’s match against Kilmarnock, where Reo Hatate was only shown a yellow card for a dangerous tackle, despite his studs being up. Hackett, a former referee himself, believes VAR should have intervened and the incident should have resulted in a red card, citing it as a clear error in decision-making.
Atkinson, with his extensive Premier League experience, will be expected to address issues of bias towards certain teams in the Scottish Premiership. Hackett, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, emphasized the need for VAR to be utilized effectively and hopes Atkinson’s expertise will contribute to the improvement of the system in Scotland. The absence of a review by VAR in the Hatate incident sparked significant debate, leading to questions regarding the system’s efficacy.
Hackett noted that the referee should have been prompted to review the incident on the monitor, which would likely have resulted in a different outcome. The failure to do so highlighted a gap in the application of VAR, an issue that Atkinson will be under pressure to address once he assumes his new role in December. Hackett’s comments underscore the importance of ensuring that VAR is used consistently and accurately in all matches, regardless of team bias or reputation.
