Golden Arrows Coach Urges PSL to Implement VAR After Controversial Chiefs Goal

Golden Arrows head coach Manqoba Mngqithi has called on the Premier Soccer League to introduce VAR following Kaizer Chiefs’ contentious 1-0 victory at FNB Stadium on Tuesday night. The match’s only goal, scored by Aden McCarthy late in the first half, appeared to come from an offside position, sparking debate across South African football.

Arrows were unable to recover after the goal, leaving them with a defeat in their opening match of the season. Mngqithi spoke to SuperSport TV after the game, emphasizing the growing need for technology in the league.

“First thing I can tell you is that the PSL will forever have issues for as long as this issue of VAR is not taken care of,” Mngqithi said. “The stakes are very high, we work very hard to build our teams and if you want to see that this goal was offside just watch the touch that goes to Silva. McCarthy is already on the other side – he is offside.”

He continued, highlighting the impact on teams and the difficulty of officiating in modern football. “We lose the game, nobody cares. We concede goals, people say it’s because we don’t defend well, but the reality is the league must work very hard on this. The game has become too dynamic. It’s too difficult even for the officials to follow and track the runs of these players. I cannot always blame the officials.”

Mngqithi stressed that the financial and competitive stakes of the league make the adoption of VAR necessary. “We’re not playing for R500 000 here, we’re playing for R20 million. The league should consider this VAR thing seriously. Otherwise, we will keep losing matches like this and people will be okay with it.”

The Arrows coach’s comments add to a growing conversation in South African football about technology and fairness. VAR has been adopted in other major leagues around the world to reduce officiating errors and ensure crucial decisions, such as offside calls, are correctly made.

For Golden Arrows, the focus now shifts to bouncing back in the league while pressing for reforms that could prevent similar controversies in future matches. Mngqithi’s appeal highlights the tension between traditional officiating and the evolving demands of modern football. The PSL will face increased scrutiny if technology solutions like VAR are not implemented to match the league’s competitive and financial growth.