Matt Donohue, the VAR official for Sunday’s Manchester derby, is understood to be a Tottenham Hotspur supporter. The revelation comes after Donohue did not overturn a goal scored by Erling Haaland despite Enzo Fernandez being offside and attempting to play the ball.
The Premier League’s refereeing organization, Pro Ref, has already acknowledged the error, stating that “The VAR did not recognise the likely impact of [Enzo Fernandez's] position and should have recommended an on-field review.” They also confirmed contact with Manchester United to acknowledge the “error of judgement” and announced a review of the incident.
Donohue has previously officiated matches involving Manchester United (seven times), Chelsea (five times), Liverpool (four times), and Manchester City (three times), but never games involving Arsenal or Tottenham. Referees are required to declare conflicts of interest and are then excluded from officiating games involving their favored team or their direct rivals. Despite this, Donohue was not excluded from refereeing City matches, raising questions given the potential incentive to favor City over Arsenal, a rival of Tottenham.
Former Manchester United player Wayne Rooney expressed his frustration, telling Match of the Day: “To not see that and recognise that Enzo Fernandez is in an offside position… anyone who's played the game at any level understands that and knows that he's in an offside position. So to get it so wrong, it's just baffling.”
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