Broos confused by VAR farce

Cameroon coach Hugo Broos was left confused after there were more farcical scenes involving the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system in his side's 3-1 loss to Germany at the Confederations Cup on Sunday.

Germany were leading 1-0 in the second half of the last group game in Sochi when Ernest Mabouka caught Emre Can with a high foot.

Referee Wilmar Roldan initally booked Mabouka's team-mate Sebastien Siani by mistake, before using the VAR to review the incident.

Roldan went on to produce a red card for Siani and he had to be persuaded by Cameroon players to look at the footage again, after which he dismissed Mabouka instead.

The confusion was the latest instance of VAR causing problems at the Confederations Cup and Broos said the referee had not explained his decisions.

"I think everyone is confused, even me," Broos told reporters. "I didn't know what happened, it was a yellow card then a red card, then a red card for another player. 

"Don't ask me what really happened! I didn't understand it and I don't now, either. After seeing it again maybe then I can answer your question but this is something for the referee himself.

"The referee did not give any explanation. First of all he gave a red card to Siani so people from VAR called him back and said it was the wrong player, so they reviewed the phase of the game and realised it was Mabouka."

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Aside from the confusion over the Can clash, Broos felt it was a harsh decision to dismiss Mabouka, with Cameroon quickly conceding a second goal and going on to lose 3-1 to the world champions, a result that saw them finish bottom of Group B.

"In that particular case both players had their foot very high, the German player and the Cameroon player, so I don't see why the referee had to give a red card," Broos added.

"It's a foul but both players had their foot high to try to reach the ball. I don't understand why only my player received the red card."

Joachim Low - who recorded his 100th Germany victory in his 150th match in charge - also criticised Roldan for his eventual decision and said VAR needs to be improved.

"I spoke to Emre Can who was involved and he was touched, definitely, but he didn't think it was a foul," Low said at his post-match media conference.

"I didn't see it on the video screens, I saw the referee showed the red card and returned to the bench for another look and then he awarded the red card [to Mabouka]. I saw he touched him but it wasn't a mean foul with intent to hurt the opponent, it was an unhappy coincidence and not intentional.

"In terms of the general use of the VAR, we need to get used to it but at least in some cases it has been proven useful, for instance offside goals. It can be fine-tuned so decisions can be made quicker."