The director of the VAR Project of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), Carlos Clos Gómez, recalled that Spanish football has “state-of-the-art technology” with the semi-automatic offside, which he supported for his decision to annul the goal of Robert Lewandowski in Real Sociedad-FC Barcelona, and regretted that “now getting it right” it continues to be said that “there are conspiracies and thefts” as when before the referees missed by millimeters without any help.
“We have cutting-edge technology in Spanish football. In the First Division we have semi-automatic offside, which for those who do not know it, is 10 more additional cameras that allow players to be tracked in 29 points and one of those coincidentally is also the toe of each of the feet,” Clos Gómez recalled before attending the Marca Awards Gala.
The former Aragonese referee insisted that “on this occasion the technology works perfectly.” “The referee said that a mistake had been made and the goal was cancelled. Nothing new that does not happen in other First Division matches, on this day or another,” he stated.
Furthermore, he did not hide that “it is evident” that more controversy has been generated because it is FC Barcelona. “You (journalists) do not pay the same attention to First and Second Division teams, from one city or another, but obviously these are situations that have occurred, are going to occur and will occur in the future, and for This is why we have cutting-edge technology in this competition,” he added in this regard.
Furthermore, the director of the VAR Project recalled that “previously, referees were attacked” for failing in these situations “by millimeters” and “it was said that there were conspiracies and that there were thefts in matches.” “And now getting it right is also said the same thing, it is difficult to get it right this way,” he stressed.
Asked if he understood FC Barcelona’s complaint, he insisted on the reliability of the technology. “The semi-automatic offside has 10 additional cameras to those the production company already has. From these additional cameras the position of each player is triangulated and that the position of the FC Barcelona player is advanced. We do not have to say anything other than confirm what already said by technology,” he stressed.
Clos Gómez also did not forget that they are already “accustomed to creating controversy in all First and Second Division matches.” “In Spain, in football, absolutely everything is questioned. I think a lot has been spent on this important technology and obviously we have to believe in it. And if we don’t believe, there is little we can do from here,” he said.