Sheffield United goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale makes a big admission about VAR ahead of key Arsenal clash

Speaking ahead of Sunday’s visit to Arsenal, where Chris Wilder’s side hope to collect their first points of the new Premier League season, Ramsdale suggested England’s flagship competition would become an even better “spectacle” for players and supporters alike if refereeing decisions were instantaneous rather than subject to lengthy reviews.

Despite returning to Bramall Lane over the summer following a three year spell on the south coast, Ramsdale remains in contact with his old team mates . With VAR yet to be adopted by the English Football League, he has discovered many of them find competing in the second tier a more pleasurable experience - thanks to the security of knowing decisions made inside the grounds are final and now likely to be overturned.

“I’ve spoken to a few of the Bournemouth lads and they are happier now there’s no VAR,” Ramsdale said. “I know there’s pro’s and con’s, and when it works it can work well. The trouble is, when it doesn’t, it’s a real head scratcher.

“In the cup games, when there’s no VAR, I believe it’s a much better spectacle. If you score a goal, you celebrate without having to worry about looking like an idiot if it eventually gets ruled out. If the linesman says you are offside, then you are offside. I don’t see why we need to use the video for every single decision. Personally, I would like to see it go back.”

Despite finishing ninth in the table last term, United were one of the teams worst affected by the implementation of VAR with only Norwich City, who like Bournemouth relinquished their top-flight status, seeing more calls go against them during the previous campaign.

It is a trend Wilder fears could be set to continue over the coming months, after expressing concerns about the red card John Egan received during last month’s defeat at Aston Villa and the amount of time John Lundstram was forced to wait before taking a first-half penalty, which he subsequently missed. Both of those calls, made by referee Graham Scott, were subject to a VAR review.

Although United have also been beaten by Wolverhampton Wanderers and Leeds, Ramsdale insisted they will travel to north London in confident mood.

“If you take the first game (against Wolves), if it had started at six minutes past six rather than six, we’d have all been sat here talking about a good performance against a top six side, in my opinion,” he said, after Nuno Espirito Santo’s men scored twice inside the opening six minutes. “Then, at Villa, we had a decision that really went against us in my opinion. Against Leeds, you could see we are creating chances and it was just a lapse in concentration. In between both boxes, I actually think we’ve been good. We just need to tighten up on a few things.”

An important message: Thank you for reading this article, one of dozens we publish every single day to provide you with the best, most up-to-date and most informative coverage of YOUR club. This depth of coverage costs, so to help us maintain the high-quality reporting that you are used to from the football team at The Star, please consider taking out a subscription to our new discounted sports-only package. You'll find all the details at https://www.thestar.co.uk/subscriptions/sports.

Your support is much appreciated.

Chris Holt, Football Editor