Rooney: VAR call on Haaland's derby winner is "baffling"
Match of the Day pundits Wayne Rooney and Danny Murphy say they are baffled VAR did not overturn Erling Haaland's winning goal in the Manchester derby, though they back the red card shown to Phil Foden as correct.
BBC's Match of the Day pundits Wayne Rooney and Danny Murphy have voiced confusion over a controversial refereeing moment from the Manchester derby, in which Erling Haaland scored the decisive winning goal.
Both former players say they cannot understand why VAR (the video assistant referee system) did not step in to overturn the goal. Rooney described the outcome as "baffling", indicating that the on-pitch decision did not match his own reading of the incident.
A different verdict on the red card
The pair took a different view of another contentious moment from the same match — Phil Foden's dismissal. On that call, both Rooney and Murphy agreed that the referee got it right, saying the red card was justified.
Rooney and Murphy are regular analysts on Match of the Day, drawing on their playing careers in English football to break down major talking points from top-flight matches. Rooney previously played for Manchester United and England, while Murphy featured for several Premier League clubs during his career.
Debate over VAR decisions remains a recurring theme in English football, with the technology introduced to reduce refereeing errors but still regularly sparking disagreement among pundits, players and supporters. The latest Manchester derby, decided by Haaland's contested goal, has reignited that discussion.
