Villas-Boas on VAR and the “green shirt”: “That trauma lingers, it itches” | OneFootball

In the editorial of Dragões Magazine, André Villas-Boas spoke about “what many would like FC Porto to ignore”.

“There are those going around selling the idea that ‘if VAR had existed earlier’ they would have won more titles at their beloved club. It is a recurring and revealing lament. Revealing because, with VAR or without VAR, there was one reality those ‘wronged’ people had to swallow: in their time FC Porto won the European Cup, won the Champions League, won the UEFA Cup, won the Europa League, and won the Intercontinental Cup twice! It was national champion, two-time champion, three-time champion, four-time champion, five-time champion. And that trauma, it seems, does not go away. It itches. It bothers them,” stressed the leader of the blue and whites, who also recalled the recent episode in the Portuguese Cup semi-final, when Sporting did not want to go through the usual entrance to the changing rooms, where FC Porto’s seven international titles were on display:

“And that is why, at the Dragão, we witnessed yet another episode of that small-mindedness: the choice of a discreet entrance, through the back door, to avoid facing head-on the weight of FC Porto’s History. When History weighs heavily, some prefer not to face it. We live with it every day, because we built it ourselves with our sweat and the demanding standards that set us apart, something that, for them, will always be unattainable, with VAR or without VAR.”

Villas-Boas also pointed to the “clear lack of impartiality”.

“The absence of opposing views is desired, and the refusal to verify any action at the source remains, because the goal of distorting public opinion is far more important than respect for an Institution and its people,” wrote the president, describing it as a “phenomenon that has been seen this season” and which “happens not only with FC Porto, but also with referees who, inadvertently, make mistakes against Sporting.”

“On the channels aligned with the green mantle, referees are dissected over every decision they make, as if a mistake were a betrayal of the Lisbon club and as if public pressure were a legitimate tool for ‘correcting’ the game. This, indeed, seems to be the new ‘system’ of Portuguese football: shaping perceptions, shaping atmospheres, shaping decisions. Today it is the penalty incident, tomorrow it is the rebound, then the ‘pedagogical’ card, next the white card, and the truth of the game ends up held hostage to the wind that blows the script into the studios and the editorial offices of certain newspapers,” reiterated André Villas-Boas.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.