Wenger calls for video technology to eliminate ‘cheating and injustice’

ARSENE WENGER has called for video technology to be trialled in England and he insists replays must be introduced to help referees cut out cheating and injustice.

Wenger has joined Alex Ferguson, who recently also came out in favour of replays in certain circumstances, in claiming football must use any available technology. However, he insisted officials also need to see the potential benefits of a ‘video referee’ sitting in the stands to review any contentious decisions on monitors.

Recent penalty decisions, including Mike Riley’s failure to award Liverpool a spot-kick against Chelsea at the weekend, have sparked the Arsenal manager’s call.

Wenger said: “You cannot accept it when justice is not being done. Whether it is for Arsenal or against Arsenal, I don’t mind, because I love football first.

“I cannot accept that Diego Maradona scores a goal then makes a stupid statement that it is the ‘Hand of God’, while the rest of the world see it is handball. That is stupid. If you love football, you can never accept that. That is cheating - a word I have already used - but it is real cheating.

“You cannot say in 2005, with 600 million people watching a game, that the only man who can’t see what is happening is the referee.

“That is not football, that is injustice. When you have the tools to help people, you should use them.

“You have to believe Mike Riley is honest and he is trying to do the best job he can, but football does not help the referees, or maybe they do not want help. That is also a problem.”

Wenger accepts Ashley Cole could therefore have been penalised for handball at Newcastle, although he insists Olivier Bernard’s similar infringement would also have been spotted on video replays.

“The technology should be available to the referee and, if he decides he wants assistance with a decision, someone upstairs can tell him - foul or no foul,” he added. “When the decision is given by the video referee, people will accept that decision.”

Wenger pointed to other sports, such as rugby league and cricket, in which video replays are now routinely used to adjudicate on key decisions. While he accepts the flow of the game in football may not be quite as well suited to the use of technology, he believes there is only one way to find out.

“As you have never tried it, there will always be people for and against,” he stressed. “Every other sport has tried it. When you see a team that deserves to win but doesn’t win, sport loses credit. People want to see justice.”

FIFA would have to approve of any trial scheme, with the governing body keen to ensure rules are the same across all parts of the game.

“But I don’t believe a kickabout game played in Africa on a Sunday afternoon is the same as a World Cup game - there is no comparison,” insisted Wenger. “In terms of preparation alone, things are much different. The rules will not change as you cannot have a camera behind every game. Yet, when you have 600 million watching, you must make sure as much as possible that the result is right.”

With the number of cameras trained on top-flight games in England, is this therefore the perfect country in which to start off any trials?

“Yes, why not?” said Wenger.