Video: Napoli player tries to award the match ball to the referee after horrendous VAR controversy vs Atalanta

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If there’s one brilliant thing about the Carabao Cup, it’s the lack of VAR and just seeing referees getting decisions wrong the old fashioned way.

If anything, the technology has actually made things worse for the officials. They are still getting huge decisions wrong, but they also have the chance to review it and get it wrong again, which is even more infuriating than before.

Tonight’s match between Napoli and Atalanta delivered a new low. With Napoli leading 2-1, one of their players was rugby tackled in the box for a clear penalty. The ref waved play on and Atalanta went straight up the other end to equalise.

READ MORE: Even Dara O’Briain is taking shots at VAR after the farce during Arsenal vs Crystal Palace

Carlo Ancelotti and his team appeared pretty calm, they knew that VAR would intervene and correct things – only it didn’t. In the end Napoli drew the game, Ancelotti got a red card and the game ended with a Napoli player trying to award the match ball to the ref:

This is the kind of pettiness that makes football brilliant. Clearly the referee didn’t feel he was Atalanta’s best player on the night and refused to accept the ball, but the gesture had the desired effect of making him look stupid.

Whose idea was VAR anyway?

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