Augsburg head coach Manuel Baum denied having “VAR Angst” after his team narrowly secured three points against visiting Heidenheim in Sunday’s home Bundesliga fixture. A rather evenly-matched affair was decided by a penalty awarded in the 79th-minute. Heidenheim defender Benedikt Gimber tugged on Augsburg captain Keven Schlotterbeck’s jersey in the box. Schlotterbeck fell to ground and match official Felix Zwayer immediately pointed to the spot.
After what Augsburg experienced last week in Mainz, there was a general sense that the Video Assist referees in the Bundesliga’s “Kölner Keller” would once again rule against the Fuggerstädter. Baum – who could not watch Alexis Claude Maurice take what would prove the 1-0 winner – was asked about his inability to witness Claude Maurice from the spot at the post match press conference.
What happened last week?
Augsburg lost 2-0 away to relegation rivals Mainz via two Nadiem Amiri converted penalties. While the second penalty wasn’t debatable, the scene at the MEWA Arena in the 5th-minute sparked a highly contentious debate. FCA midfielder Elvis Rexhbecaj engaged in a duel against Mainz defender Stefan Bell in the box. Match official Patrick Ittrich awarded a penalty when Bell went to ground
Ittrich was controversially not called to the pitch-side video screen despite the fact that replays couldn’t actually confirm that there was contact. Rexhbecaj attempted to play the ball, but appeared to miss both the ball and Bell. Baum and Rexhbecaj both railed against this “ghost foul” after the match. Ittrich himself questioned the decision. Augsburg fans and the German press went wild.
“It’s completely incomprehensible that the referee doesn’t go to the screen and the decision isn’t reversed,” Baum remarked at the post match press conference last week. “You can’t see any contact in any of the images. If no contact is visible in the images, the decision stands. This is ludicrous. No one can explain to me how you can come to such a conclusion.”
“Even with a magnifying glass, you can’t see any contract,” Rexhbecaj added in the mixed zone. “VAR seems to upset everyone. It’s better not to have it. Let’s get back to human error. There are still mistakes. We get upset like we used to. End of story. Making wrong decisions based on images is not acceptable. A lot of money is spent on video technology. You can zoom in, look at it from every angle. And yet there are far too many decisions that are simply wrong.“
“I saw that Rexhbecaj went in hard and there was clear contact with his foot,” Ittrich told Sky Germany. “I heard it too. The players around him all heard the bang too. For me, it was a clear penalty.“
After seeing the images, however, Ittrich changes his tune.
“When I see the images, I have to say I would assume that’s not a penalty,” Ittrich said. “But I’m grateful VAR didn’t intervene. I heard the contract. The rulings on the field should be allowed to stand.“
The Augsburg Kurve backs Rexhbecaj
The Augsburg ultras of the famed Ulrich-Biesinger-Tribune made their feelings known prior to kickoff at the WWK Arena on Saturday afternoon, unfurling dozens of banners protesting VAR. More hand-scrawled banners were held up throughout the course of the match, almost every last one insulting the technology in creative (if not sometimes vulgar) terms.
It should be noted that every German FanKurve has a “Videobeweis abschaffen” (“Eliminate VAR”) banner that is held up in the central lower section of the ultra section any time a VAR review takes place. Irrespective of whether the VAR decision benefits the team supported or not, the familiar logo invariably remains up next to the main central chant leader.
This coordinated effort was something else.
Manuel Baum denies being nervous
“I could see from my vantage point that it wasn’t debatable,” Baum remarked with a wry smirk at the post match press conference. “The referee had a clear very clear view of the scene. He was only a couple of meters away. I didn’t have any [doubting thoughts].
“[I didn’t look] because that’s something of a ritual,” Baum continued. “Despite the fact that I trust my players to convert, I can still trust that they will without watching them directly.“
