"I don't quite understand VAR"

Celta Vigo coach Claudio Giraldez labelled Andriy Lunin's possible penalty on Williot Swedberg in the 37th minute, just before Kylian Mbappe's opener, as “a decisive action” and, although he did not want to talk about the referee's performance, he did show his lack of knowledge regarding the assumptions in which the VAR enters to review what happened.

“It is a decisive action. The decision of the referee and the VAR must be respected. The other day I spoke about the referees and said I was going to try not to do it, and I'm going to try,” he said at a press conference.

“I talk about me and what depends on us. I think I handled it badly the other day -his criticism of the referee-. And with regard to the VAR, I blame it on myself, not knowing when the VAR comes in. I have to train myself,” he added.

“I'm a young coach. I've been in La Liga for less than a year and I have to train myself. In the Spanish third tier there was none and I have to train myself because I don't understand it,” he added.

Giraldez did reveal that Swedberg was sure it was a penalty. “Swedberg arrived calmly saying that it was a very clear penalty. But the referees know more than I do about the regulations and we have to respect them,” he concluded.

 

January 16, 2025