'VAR is where it let itself down'

Leeds will be "frustrated" in how they fell to defeat by Sunderland after VAR "let itself down", says former striker Jermaine Beckford.

The Whites suffered a disappointing 1-0 loss at home on Tuesday night after the Black Cats' Habib Diarra scored the winner from the penalty spot in the second half following a VAR review of a Ethan Ampadu handball.

However, Leeds themselves were earlier denied what they felt was a penalty after Luke O'Nien's challenge on Pascal Struijk in the box.

Boss Daniel Farke spoke about the incident after the match and said: "It's not even a question. What was VAR doing? It's tough to understand how this is not checked. If the referee watched it back he would say all day long it's a penalty. It's more for VAR, it's difficult for the referee to see."

Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live Breakfast, Beckford added: "Leeds will be really frustrated because of the manner in which they lost the game. They had a great opportunity.

"They should have been given a penalty. I don't know what happened. You can't blame the referee for missing the incident because during a set-piece or corner, whatever goes on in the penalty box is really difficult to keep an eye on, but VAR is where it let itself down.

"They are supposed to pick up on the points the referee misses. When you watch the first replay back, it is clear something has happened. O'Nien put his arms around the neck of Struijk - clear as day penalty but no VAR check.

"Then they came out not long after and gave an embarrassing reason as to why they missed it, something about not being clear and obvious. I can't remember the wording exactly, but it was really silly."