Frank Lampard has said that VAR appears to be working in favor of Manchester United at the moment and has warned Chelsea defenders to be wary of awarding penalties as they seek to end a series of three successive losses on Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s side in their semi-final. of the FA Cup on Sunday.
United has matched a record for random kicks awarded in a single Premier League campaign after winning 13 this season and Lampard wants his players to avoid diving into Wembley, noting how Bruno Fernandes molded his body to convince officials that They will criticize penalty against Aston Villa this month.
Statistics are not lost on Chelsea’s manager, who believes United benefited from some questionable VAR calls during his victory over Crystal Palace on Tuesday. Equally, however, Lampard knows that his side must be smart when United’s fast forwards rush towards them. Although he feels United benefited from poor refereeing when they won the league at Stamford Bridge in February, he couldn’t complain about the penalties his defenders gave when Chelsea lost in the league at Old Trafford in August and at home in the Carabao Cup. in October.
“They must be careful because when players of such high level, quality and speed from Manchester United strikers travel quickly, you have to move your feet and not dive,” said Lampard. “That is an important part of defense at any time. But [especially] when you understand the qualities of the opposition, with players like that.
“And Fernandes, to be fair, because he is very intelligent in his movement. We saw that at Aston Villa to make something feel like punishment where maybe it isn’t even punishment. Players don’t have to give that. As a player, we can talk about VAR decisions and whether they are right or wrong, but if a player is going to dangle a leg and not move his feet, then obviously you will be open to penalties, VAR or not VAR. “
United, who is battling Chelsea for the Champions League standings, was on the far right of some debatable VAR calls when they moved a point behind Lampard’s side by beating Palace. Victor Lindelöf avoided a penalty after appearing to commit a foul on Wilfried Zaha moments before Marcus Rashford gave United the lead and Palace ruled out a tie for the strongest offside against Jordan Ayew.
“There is always a human element in VAR, still, and they clearly have a choice to make,” Lampard said. “The confusing thing about some of the recent ones, and the one on Thursday night, is that it is a very, very clear and obvious decision that was wrong and was not reviewed or modified. Some of those have happened and that is strange. I would like to think that with VAR you have to be sensible. Some may go against you or not. But it seems that we are in a period in which, in terms of Manchester United, they have some in their favor ”.
Kurt Zouma gifted a penalty kick with a trip to Marcos Rashford when Chelsea lost 4-0 at Old Trafford on opening day and it was Marcos Alonso with an awkward foul on Daniel James when Solskjær’s team won at Stamford Bridge in the Carabao Cup.
However, Chelsea, who still does not have the injured N’Golo Kanté, was furious after losing at home to United in the league. Harry Maguire stayed on the field to score a header after escaping a red card when he appeared to be kicking Michy Batshuayi, and Chelsea had goals from Zouma and Olivier Giroud ruled out by VAR in the second half.
“It would be nice if VAR worked in our favor on this case, I guess,” said Lampard. “Fair play, we have lost three and that is just a fact. I am not in revenge. I just want to win the game on Sunday and against a very good team.
“It was a team change in the Carabao Cup and I still felt we were the best team, but you lose.” Then in the league we had a good first half, we lost opportunities and they take advantage of theirs. You have to respect the fact that they are a good team and we can all see that in their recent form, but I’m not too concerned about the games that have happened. I just want to win the one in front of us. “
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