THE BIG DEBATE: Howard Webb sent unanimous Pro Ref verdict after Manchester derby VAR howler as officials' standards continue to slip

It was a bad weekend to be a Premier League referee. It all started with the controversy at the Stadium of Light as Sunderland were awarded a penalty.

The decision left Mikel Arteta furious and while it meant little in the end, the debate over the decision has rolled on. And then came the Manchester derby. Erling Haaland's goal was ruled out on the pitch, only to be given by a VAR intervention.

The only problem was that it actually should have been chalked off, with Pro Ref forced into an embarrassing apology in the aftermath.

It has left fans, coaches and players alike questioning the authority of Pro Ref and boss Howard Webb. So is it time for a major change at the top of refereeing?

Mirror Football writers have their say...

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In whatever guise Pro Ref or PGMOL or whatever it becomes next is in, there is always going to be debate around refereeing decisions in football. It’s why it’s the best game in the world.

And the old cliche is correct in what goes around comes around. One week a decision will go for you, the next it won’t. That’s just football.

Does that make it right? No, not at all.

In my opinion, it’s not Pro Ref that needs a revamp, it’s the whole VAR system. Wayne Rooney is absolutely correct in his suggestions that it is sucking the delight and the spontaneity out of the game.

Managers should be able to choose when to appeal in a system similar to both rugby and cricket. Then, there would be no complaints over whether something has been checked or not.

Putting the power in the hands of the players and those coaching them will go a long way to ironing these issues out. And you wouldn’t have got a situation like the one on Sunday.

Will that solve the competence of officials? Again, no. But you’d like to think that there’d be more developed and intelligent referees without having the crutch of VAR to lean on for every single decision they make.

A title such as Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) could not get any less snappy so you have to admit Pro Ref has a far better ring to it.

The trouble is that the refereeing and VAR system needs more than a cosmetic overhaul. It reminds me of the time when authorities would tackle problem areas in their cities by renaming them. Roads would become boulevards, estates would become villages, and they thought that would do the trick.

Pro Ref needs a boss, a figurehead. Howard Webb has his moments of clarity but he cannot afford for there to be any more howlers like the one that gave City the win in the Manchester derby.

And quite frankly, does the professional game need its head of refereeing to come out and explain the obvious? Some say yes, some think those explanations are useful.

But surely time would be better spent grafting away on exactly what went wrong.

The VAR official’s obvious mistake that led to United’s defeat should not mean the end of Webb’s tenure but a good refereeing boss should be the same as a good referee.

You don’t notice him. And, right now, that its not the case with Webb.

You can throw stats at us.

Fewer interventions, quicker checks and a better VAR return. And yet all good work is undone by the ridiculous farce of Erling Haaland’s goal at Old Trafford.

When you have got everyone scratching their heads and wondering how the goal stood and yet the officials defied logic by ruling it was ok… then you have got serious problems.

It is embarrassing and highly damaging. Howard Webb is coming up for four years in the game. He communicates better, is way better as a leader than what we had before… but is it working?

The clubs don’t seem to think so. Look at what Michael Carrick said. Mikel Arteta the day before after his side were punished with a penalty against Sunderland.

Yes, they wanted to stop penalty box grappling. But this is always the case. Make a big song and dance, there is a crackdown in the first month when teams get penalised and then it evens out. How is that fair? How is that good leadership?

One game has a lighter touch on VAR. The next doesn’t. Honestly, it’s become a farce. No consistency. Any improvements get wiped out by high-profile errors and that has to be at Webb’s door.

We have to get teams of officials, a better understanding and communication. And we must do it quick. This guessing game and lack of consistency is simply not good enough.

The decision was patently wrong and we would all rather see the back of VAR. But it's about time the finger was pointed higher up.

If the referees and VAR officials aren't up to scratch (although it's worth noting the on-field team got the decision right) then we need to start asking why?

Howard Webb has been in charge of ProRef, formerly the much wordier Professional Game Match Officials Limited, for four years. He was tasked with smoothening VAR and making it a quicker, more accurate process. Can we honestly say he has succeeded?

Webb will appear on the box alongside Michael Owen in the next week or two explaining how his colleagues came to the wrong decision and offering platitudes about how they will try to avoid a similar incident in future.

But it will happen again. Make no bones about it. It has kept happening again for four years. We are only four games into the new season and we already have a clanger of a decision that could prove pivotal at the end of the season.

It's time for fewer words and more action. Things need to improve, sharpish, and if they don't Webb should stand aside for somebody else to have a go.