Brighton defender Pascal Struijk had a red card shown at Sunderland after VAR stepped in, but the decision was later rescinded. Can a tech review really change fate?
Struijk was dismissed in the 57th minute of Saturday’s Stadium of Light encounter, judged to have tripped Sunderland forward Wilson Isidor on a through ball.
Referee Thomas Bramall and his assistant saw no foul at first, yet VAR specialist Neil Davies summoned the referee to the monitor.
After reviewing the incident repeatedly, Bramall issued a straight red for denying an obvious goal‑scoring chance.
The Brighton squad reacted with shock, but the ruling has now been overturned following a successful appeal.
The appeal outcome spares Struijk a one‑match suspension, leaving him available for the weekend Premier League tie against Crystal Palace.
Struijk arrived from Leeds for £20 million in the summer and was making only his second league start for the Seagulls.
Even without him, Brighton secured a 2‑0 victory and sustained their impressive opening season form.
The Seagulls sit third, five points shy of leaders Manchester City.
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If Bramall had issued the red himself, it would have been a bad call; receiving it via VAR makes the error far more egregious, in my view.
Red cards for denying an obvious chance after video review are scarce, given the many subjective factors involved.
Last season saw three such dismissals – Liverpool’s Dominik Szoboszlai, Crystal Palace’s Maxence Lacroix and Bournemouth’s Marcos Senesi (the latter was mistakenly upheld on the monitor).
There was considerable doubt Isidor could reach the ball before Bart Verbruggen, suggesting the chance was possible rather than obvious.
With the Premier League’s high VAR standards, Bramall should not have been referred to the monitor.
Perhaps the screen visit clouded his judgment, yet this was precisely the scenario where the referee ought to reject VAR advice.