Pep Guardiola makes a valid point about VAR and Manchester City

VAR, as it so often is, has been a major talking point this week. The Video Assistant Referee’s decision to disallow West Ham’s late equalizer in their 1-0 defeat to Arsenal at the London Stadium last Sunday has seen VAR dominate the headlines, especially considering that one VAR decision has affected both ends of the Premier League table. Putting that decision, and a host of others that have gone against Manchester City this season, to the side, Pep Guardiola made a valid point about VAR when asked about the subject yesterday. He said his team simply has to be better to put any VAR decisions out of the equation. That is all City can do, and it is what they have previously done in years gone by.

Pep Guardiola doesn’t trust VAR and wants his Manchester City team to be better so they don’t have to worry about VAR decisions.

Speaking ahead of another Premier League fixture that Manchester City must win against Crystal Palace, Pep Guardiola was asked about VAR following the controversy that has erupted since Arsenal’s 1-0 win over West Ham. The City manager explained that he doesn’t trust VAR, and his team simply has to be better and not worry about refereeing or VAR decisions. He explained, in quotes relayed by Sky Sports: “What is important is tomorrow, then we’ll see what happens when we get to the next one. I always learned that when you lose focus, you’re in a dangerous situation. Only we can do what we have to do and do it better. That is only in our control.”

“We lost the two FA Cup finals because the referees didn’t do their job that they should do. Even the VAR. When this happened, it’s because we have to do better. Not the referees. I have never trusted anything [with VAR] since I arrived a long time ago.”

“That [VAR] is a flip of a coin. You have to do it better yourself. That is Crystal Palace, focus, focus and focus. Of course, it’s not in our hands in this Premier League. I always said to the players when I arrived here and in Barcelona and Bayern Munich: ‘Guys do it better’. The other one is a job for the statements and institutions which rule the competition.”

City have themselves to blame for their title destiny being out of their hands as Pep Guardiola’s point in right on the money.

Focusing on VAR is wasted energy for Pep Guardiola and Manchester City. Until VAR is refined, streamlined, or fired from a cannon into the sun, the same VAR issues will persist. Since VAR was introduced, it has become a weekly talking point, and that doesn’t appear likely to change anytime soon.

All Manchester City can do, as Pep Guardiola pointed out, is get better. City have improved this season with a new-look team. That has been a gradual process across the 2025-26 season. One area of improvement for Pep Guardiola’s side to focus on is seeing out games. Too many times this season, City have thrown away points from winning positions. That has cost City more in this season’s title race than VAR decisions. If Pep Guardiola’s side fixes this, they won’t have to concern themselves with the decisions made by referees and VAR.

As Pep Guardiola pointed out, there is nothing for Manchester City to gain by concerning themselves with VAR decisions. All City can focus on is getting better to take VAR and everything associated with it out of the equation. Nothing more. That way, VAR won’t be part of the equation for City to overcome in the future.