Manchester derby VAR controversy: Hackett backs offside complaint

Earlier this week we reported on the anger around Old Trafford before Manchester United vs Manchester City. The latest flashpoint came from the decision that let Erling Haaland's winner stand after a VAR check, with Manchester United left on the wrong side of a major offside row. Keith Hackett says the goal should have been ruled out, while Michael Carrick has tried to keep the loss in perspective.

Hackett's offside case

Hackett's view is straightforward. Speaking to the Standard, the former Premier League referee chief said: "The goal should have been ruled out for offside." He added that Enzo Fernández "made a deliberate play for the ball" and that an offside-positioned player becomes active when he does so.

The Premier League match centre disagreed. Its explanation was that Fernández, while in an offside position, did not play the ball. That split is the whole argument, and it is why the goal stayed under scrutiny even after the VAR review.

The incident also sat inside a messy derby. Phil Foden was dismissed for violent conduct in the first half, and Haaland's finish came in a match that was already tense before the offside check.

Carrick's reaction after United's defeat

Carrick did not lean on the decision as an excuse. "It's not going to change the season," he said, after United suffered their second defeat of the season. He was more direct about what his side still has to do: "We've got to get back to winning football matches. That's on us, but that decision, that wasn't on us today."

United's numbers from the game fit that line. They had 21 shots, and Bruno Fernandes and Kobbie Mainoo both finished on 7.2 in the derby ratings. Carrick also said the team had "moments" and needed to "create and score after that."

Haaland's winner took him to four Premier League goals for the season and, in the article's framing, moved him out on his own at the top of the scoring charts. City's recent run has been strong too, with four wins from their last five matches.

The row is unlikely to disappear quickly, but the next concrete date is the next Premier League weekend, when both clubs move on from Manchester United vs Manchester City. United will still have the offside debate in the background, yet the league table will keep the result as a defeat and Haaland's goal as the difference.