Sam Allardyce slams ‘chaotic’ and ‘confusing’ VAR and says it is making an ‘absolute mockery’ of football after West Brom draw with Manchester United

West Brom boss Sam Allardyce says VAR is making an ‘absolute mockery’ of football’s rules.

The Video Assistant Referee took centre stage once more in the Baggies’ 1-1 draw with Manchester United on Sunday.

Referee Craig Pawson awarded the Red Devils a second-half penalty when Semi Ajayi was adjudged to have fouled Harry Maguire in the box.

However, following a VAR review, which did not even check to see if an offside-looking Maguire was onside, Pawson overturned his decision after looking at the pitchside monitor.

Allardyce, who was an advocate for the technology before its introduction, insists it is causing ‘chaos’ in football.

He told Monday’s talkSPORT Breakfast: “It’s bizarre. They’re making an absolute mockery of the rules and the laws of the game.

“I was an advocate for VAR, but unfortunately the change of the rules and the introduction of VAR – and this is well before I took the manager’s job at West Brom, this was two-and-a-half years out of football – is making it worse not better.

“So whatever everybody is saying, the confusion is causing chaos and it’s making everything worse.

“It’s hitting the headlines about what the rules are or aren’t, instead of talking about the beautiful game.

“Unfortunately it’s making too big an impression in the wrong way for me. That’s really sad when we have such a great league.”

West Brom took a shock lead inside the opening two minutes through Mbaye Diagne, before Bruno Fernandes equalised just before half-time with a fine volley.

The other big talking point was the penalty drama, and Allardyce is adamant VAR is being used too often in Premier League matches.

“They use this term ‘clear and obvious’, and there is no such thing being used as clear and obvious to me,” added Big Sam.

“So looking at what they say about what VAR is to be or should be, it should be clear and obvious, but there is nothing that I’ve seen before I came back in the game that’s clear and obvious.

“It just seems anything could be anything now. More importantly, everyone is thinking when they go over to look at the screen, it’s all going to get changed most of the time.

“There was no [pitchside] screen last year, there’s a screen this year; it just seems so chaotic and so confusing.

“We don’t know what the decision is going to be with what’s supposed to bring more clarity in terms of the use of VAR and the technology. It’s really distracting from the game.

“I was an advocate of it for many, many years, but whether the referees need to clarify the rules more or not, but for me they’re using it far too often and not only on what should be the clear and obvious.”