Bailey Peacock-Farrell: VAR went through ‘every possible avenue’ to disallow late equaliser
Goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell says the manner of Northern Ireland’s defeat in Denmark really hurt and has claimed the officials were looking at ‘every possible avenue’ to find a way to not award Callum Marshall’s injury time ‘goal’.
Not for the first time the Burnley star produced some fine saves in a Northern Ireland shirt on Friday and there was one magnificent pass to set up Isaac Price for a chance which Denmark’s goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel stopped but after the game he was more concerned with the injury time action in the Danish box.
Peacock-Farrell was in the opposition area when West Ham teenager Marshall flicked the ball into the net to make it 1-1 in the Euro 2024 qualifier. Then VAR intervened and after a five minute check ruled the goal out for offside with the Danes winning 1-0.
“In the last minute of the game when you think you have equalised and to see that taken away from you with VAR is a real tough one,” said Peacock-Farrell.
“I don’t know the ins and outs but to see it take that long it really hurts you know.
“I felt like they were going through every possible avenue to find a way to not give us that goal. It felt that way. It is a hard one because I thought the boys dug deep and we battled with a really top side. To come away from nothing is a shame.”
Asked for his thoughts on VAR, the goalkeeper commented: “To be fair I think it has brought a lot of clarity to the game. Decisions can be fixed and amended which is obviously good. Today we were just on the wrong side of it. Over the course of your career you will have some go your way and some won’t but it doesn’t make it any easier when it is like it was in Denmark.
“We set out with a game plan of being able to control the tempo and making it our game rather than Denmark’s. There was a spell when they got on top after their goal and they had momentum but I felt we handled it quite well and rode that out and we managed to get ourselves back on top in the final part of the game and it was them holding out rather than us.
“Now we have to get three points against Kazakhstan on Monday. That was always the plan and regardless of the outcome in Denmark we will still intend to do that.”
