07 Mar 2026 20:45:36
Despite some of the bigger teams disparaging the FA Cup it always seems to have some magic about it.
It was close on scores at Mansfield v Arsenal and Wrexham gave Chelsea a fright and if it wasn't for VAR the result might have been different.

Mixed feelings about tomorrow but think we should rest as many first picks as possible but put a few on the bench if needed. Home advantage should hopefully see us through and then take the same view on the next round. Premiership survival is the main aim but if we can generate some income at minimum risk via the FA Cup then we should take it.

1.) 07 Mar 2026
07 Mar 2026 21:00:16
Agree, Dunelm. We should want to get through. I know there is the risk of injuries, but if we weren't in the Cup, they could be training tomorrow and still maybe pick up an injury. We do have form for players getting injured in training! Regarding the two games today you mentioned, they were two cracking Cup ties, especially the Wrexham game.

They were unlucky that they didn't win.

2.) 07 Mar 2026
07 Mar 2026 21:01:37
I'm not certain VAR got the disallowed Wrexham goal right. It looked to me like it might've glanced off a Chelsea head after Kieffer Moore headed it, in which case the 'scorer' couldn't have been offside.

3.) 08 Mar 2026
07 Mar 2026 23:33:12
JR, a glance off a defender doesn't count. The defender would have to deliberately play the ball. I agree that VAR has been implemented completely wrong; it should be more like the TA in rugby, but that would mean an extra ref watching each game, instead of just one VAR on duty for all the games.

4.) 08 Mar 2026
08 Mar 2026 10:10:45
CA, How I do envy the Rugby Laws. They are so ahead of us in common sense.

5.) 08 Mar 2026
08 Mar 2026 01:32:00
CA I think you're right that a defender would have to deliberately play the ball to cancel out an offside. However, according to PL rules, every single match has its own dedicated Video Assistant Referee (VAR) and a supporting Assistant VAR (AVAR) , not just one on duty for all the games.

The delays in VAR reaching decisions are bad enough as it is, but if they were trying to adjudicate on simultaneous incidents at two or more games they'd be intolerable.

Match officials article