Ben Brereton Diaz denied wonder goal for Villarreal after 'incomprehensible' VAR call rules out winner

It seems VAR isn't just haunting the Premier League this season after Villarreal were denied a winning goal by a controversial call against Sevilla.

VAR has been one of football's biggest talking points this campaign, with countless mistakes made in both the English top-flight and Champions League.

But it was Villarreal who were the latest victims of the technology during their La Liga clash with Sevilla on Sunday.

Kike Salas opened the scoring for Sevilla in the 75th minute before Jose Luis Morales levelled the scores just two minutes later.

Substitute Ben Brereton Diaz then looked to have won the game for Villarreal in the 95th minute of stoppage after bulldozing through the Sevilla defence and slotting the ball past the goalkeeper.

However, after a lengthy VAR review, Brereton Diaz was adjudged to have clipped Salas' heels on his path to goal. You can watch how the events unfolded below.

🟡 Ben Brereton Diaz thought he'd scored a stoppage time winner and his first LALIGA goal...

...but VAR ruled out the goal to leave Villarreal to settle for a draw with Sevilla ❌ pic.twitter.com/EWMzkdvZUf

— Viaplay Sports UK (@ViaplaySportsUK) December 3, 2023

After the full-time whistle, Villarreal chief executive Fernando Roig Negueroles gave a damning assessment of VAR and called for a new recruitment process when selecting officials.

"It is an incomprehensible move," said Roig via Tribal Football. "Today it has clearly stolen two points from us, but we have to continue.

"It is absolutely incompressible. It is a tool to minimise errors, not to maximise. But it is also not a blatant move. It is not even a foul and the referee is in front, the VAR should never intervene.

"It is the corporatism that when calls you it will review it so as not to disallow it, although the VAR should never enter there. He [the referee] must have the personality to maintain himself but it's the VAR's fault."

Roig added: "Today it happened to us, but this is bad for Spanish football, we cannot act like this. It is there to help, not to harm. It should not go in, it is not a flagrant play and the referee does not call a foul. This year we are giving a very poor image of football.

"We need VAR specialists to sign, not former referees."