VAR robs Chelsea twice as star cops heat for 'common assault' on rival goalkeeper
Sonia Bompastor wants to see more "competent" referees put in charge of VAR after Chelsea were denied two goals in a thriller Champions League battle against Arsenal.
A number of key stars did not take to the field for the first leg of the quarter finals for either team, with five Australian players ruled out by their coaches due to travel fatigue. Ellie Carpenter was the only Australian named in the game day squad but was not used.
The result ended 3-1 in favour of Arsenal as Chelsea were forced to accept two controversial no goal rulings that could have turned the game on its head.
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The first came at the end of the first half when Veerle Buurman headed the ball into the back of the net, but she was denied by VAR due to fouling Lotte Wubben-Moy as she leapt up to make the header.
The decision did not sit well with the playing group, although tensions did not truly boil over until the final minutes of the match when they were denied by VAR again.
Chelsea's Kadeisha Buchanan collides into goalkeeper Anneke Borbe. PA Images via Getty Images
Lauren James had delivered a perfect ball from the corner into the box in front of Kadeisha Buchanan, who booted it past the goalkeeper and into the net.
In doing so, Buchanan did force Anneke Borbe to hit the deck, with her leg striking the Arsenal goalkeeper as she followed through.
The referee was quick to signal that the goal would not stand due to Buchanan's actions, which had left Borbe curled up on the turf for a short period of time.
"As soon as you touch a goalkeeper you have absolutely no chance of a goal," former English footballer Lucy Ward said in commentary on ESPN.
"That's like karate ... it's common assault really.
"There is absolutely no complaints from me about that one."
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Kadeisha Buchanan reacts after her disallowed goal. Getty
Buchanan was in disbelief as the referee waited for approval from VAR to play on. Chelsea coach Sonia Bompastor was equally as furious as she waited on the sidelines.
The French manager did not hide her anger about the ruling post-match.
"We could argue that the goalkeeper didn't have the ball in hand," she said.
"It is difficult because even when you tell them something they just say, 'yeah, I'm checking', but even when they are checking they still make the wrong decision.
"I am not usually someone who complains a lot because I want to show respect, but this is not good enough at this level of the competition.
"When you are playing in a quarter-final of the Champions League, you need to have the best referees. It is crazy to think that the goals we had disallowed were good goals.
"People might think I am saying that because I am a bad loser ... but it is just disappointing because if we want the women's game to go up another level then we need to have referees who are at the top level as well."
Sonia Bompastor watches on from the sidelines. Getty
Arsenal underlined its credentials for back-to-back Women’s Champions League titles by beating English rival Chelsea 3-1, while Wolfsburg took a 1-0 lead over record eight-time champion Lyonnes in a meeting of two of the competition’s most storied names.
Stina Blackstenius - with her first Champions League goal since the winner in the final against Barcelona last season - and Chloe Kelly gave Arsenal a 2-0 half time lead at Emirates Stadium.
James curled a brilliant long-range shot into the top corner to reduce the deficit for Chelsea but Arsenal regained its two-goal cushion when Alessia Russo drove home from the edge of the area.
Chelsea finished higher in the league stage - third place, compared to Arsenal in fifth - but has work to do in next week’s return leg across London to reach the semi finals for the fourth straight season.
Lineth Beerensteyn scored the only goal for Wolfsburg with a deflected 14th-minute shot against Lyon in the 12th Champions League meeting between the teams, which makes it tied for the most-played fixture in the competition’s history.
Four of those matches have been in finals, highlighting their status.
Kadidiatou Diani hit the post late in the game for Lyon, whose most recent of its eight titles came in 2022.
The other two first-leg matches in the quarter-finals are on Thursday (AEDT), when Real Madrid hosts Barcelona and Manchester United makes its debut at this stage against Bayern Munich.
