5 Moments in football history that needed a VAR intervention

#3 Mings stamps on Ibrahimovic – Manchester United vs. Bournemouth, Premier League 2016-17

An angry clash between Tyrone Mings and Zlatan Ibrahimovic would've seen Mings sent off had VAR been in operation

One feature that we’ve seen from VAR on numerous occasions this season is the red card review; essentially, if the VAR referee feels that the on-pitch official has been too lenient with a challenge or an off-the-ball incident, they can step in to advise that a red card be shown to the offending player.

2019-20 has seen the likes of Son Heung-min and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang fall victim to this aspect of VAR, but if the system had been in place in the 2016-17 campaign, there can be no doubt that Tyrone Mings – then of Bournemouth, now starring for Aston Villa – would’ve seen red for an incident in the Cherries’ 1-1 draw with Manchester United.

The first half of the game saw Mings tangle with United striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic – and moments later, as the Swede found himself grounded, it appeared that the Cherries defender blatantly stamped on his head. The referee failed to notice the incident – meaning Mings was not even booked – and minutes later the official also failed to spot Ibrahimovic’s revenge – an elbow to Mings’ head when the two jumped for a header in the box.

Both men ended up being banned by the FA for their conduct; Mings received a 5-match ban while Ibrahimovic was banned for 3 games, but had VAR been in use at the time, the Swede would’ve escaped any sanction, purely because the future England defender would almost certainly have been red-carded for the stamp.