The Road To VAR | Ep 5

Never mind the second goal, the greatest individual goal ever scored, the Hand of God goal cemented Diego Maradona's status, in England at least, as a villain and a cheat.

But across the Irish Sea, history, politics, and a national identity often rooted in defiance of English dominance means that, in Ireland at least, Maradona's looked upon rather more favourably. The role of footballing villain in Ireland belongs not to the controversial Argentine, but to one of the poster boys of the modern game, Thierry Henry.

The cultured Frenchman mesmerized a generation of Premier League football fans with an unbeatable combination of pace, power, and finesse, and was an integral part of Arsenal's domestic success. As well as the French national team's World Cup and European Championship winning teams. But his actions, deliberate or otherwise, in a crucial World Cup qualifier against the Republic of Ireland, not only tainted an otherwise impeccable playing career, it also reignited the debate surrounding football officiating and the use of video technology.

The 2006 World Cup final marked the end of the Zinedine Zidane era of French football. The elegant Frenchman had inspired Les Bleus to World Cup triumph in 1998 and European Championship glory in 2000, but ended his career in ignominy after his infamous headbutt on Italy's Marco Materazzi in the 2006 World Cup final. The post-Zidane era started off disastrously after qualifying for the 2008 European Championships in Austria and Switzerland. France crashed out of the tournament without recording a single win. They finished bottom of the group. Criticism from the French media was scathing. Lillian Turan and Claude Makelele announced their retirements from international football and there was a clamour for manager Raymond Dominic's head. Former world cup and European championship winning captain of the 1998 and 2000 teams Didier Deschamps was the favourite to take over. The French FA, however, resisted intense pressure and decided to keep faith with Dominic. Deschamps missed out, but his time would come.

With the question mark over manager Raymond Dominic's future now resolved, the French team could now focus on their next target. Automatic qualification for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Their campaign kicked off on the 6th of September 2008, in Vienna. France crashed to a 3-1 defeat to pile the pressure back on Dominic. The rest of the campaign is not much better. There were unconvincing wins at home to Serbia, Lithuania, and the Faroe Islands by one goal margins. Going into the last two group games, France still had automatic qualification in their hands but could only manage disappointing draws against Romania at home and Serbia away. As a result, France finished in second place in their group, outside of the automatic qualification spots. They would now have to play a playoff against another runner-up team to secure their place in the 2010 World Cup. That team would be the Republic of Ireland.

Despite a footballing history that dates back to the late1800s, it wasn't until 1953 that the men in green were officially recognized by FIFA as the Republic of Ireland. Ireland's troubled past meant that teams from the island of Ireland were often a reflection of the competing claims and counterclaims between the north and the south. Two separate Irish football federations were competing for players as well as the name Ireland itself. All that ended when in 1953 FIFA declared that the independent nation of Ireland would be referred to as the Republic of Ireland while the British North would be referred to as Northern Ireland. The post-war period for Irish football was largely unremarkable although they did make history in 1965 when for the very first time in their history they selected a player for the national team who was born outside the Republic.

Manchester United fullback Shea Brennan was born in Manchester and played for United in their first game after the Munich air disaster in February 1958. Brennan qualified for the Republic of Ireland by virtue of his Irish parentage. Ireland would only make full use of its diaspora some twenty years later, when Jack Charlton, a member of England's 1966 World Cup winning team, became manager of the national team in 1986. The Irish had now entered their golden period. Charlton cast the net far and wide in his selection of players and in particular targeted players of Irish extraction playing in England's top flight. Mark Lawrenson, John Aldridge, and Ray Houghton, born in Scotland, brought with them their wealth of winning experience from the all-conquering Liverpool team of the 80s with Arsenal's David O'Leary adding to Ireland's growing list of established stars. But after successful European Championship and World Cup campaigns, Jack Charlton ended his reign as manager with defeat to the Netherlands in a playoff for a spot at the Euro 1996 finals. With that defeat, decline set in and the Irish would miss out on successive major tournament qualifications.

In 2008, the Irish FA appointed Giovanni Trapattoni as their next manager. His remit was clear…to lead the team to South Africa and qualification for the 2010 World Cup. One of the most successful managers in Italian football history, Trapattoni guided the Irish through an unbeaten qualification round, winning four of their ten group games.However, it was not enough to secure automatic qualification. With FIFA making a controversial last minute decision to have a seeded draw for the playoffs, the Irish were drawn against 1998 world champions France.

The stage was set. Could the wily old Trapattoni mastermind a famous victory against one of Europe's elites and lead them to yet another famous World Cup finals? Or would the threat posed by French duo Nicolas Anelka and Thierry Henry prove irresistible? Ireland were the hosts for the first leg. With the teams going into the interval goalless, it seemed that Trapattoni's master plan was working. However, the second half proved more difficult for the Irish as the French began to assert their dominance. In the 68th minute, French fullback Patrice Evra was brought down by Shay Given. The referee waved away furious French protests. The luck of the Irish held. For now. But within a few minutes, France were ahead with Nicolas Anelka finally breaking the deadlock. The French held their nerve and left Croke Park with a 1-0 lead, going into the return leg at the Parc de Prince. Just four days later, on November 18th, it was France's turn to play host as a packed Parc de Prince looked to roar on Les Bleus to World Cup qualification. And the 2006 World Cup finalists started on the front foot, taking the game to the Irish. But with just ten minutes gone, France were forced into an early substitution when Julian Escudet was taken off after suffering a collision with Patrice Evra to be replaced by his Sevilla teammate Sebastian Scalacci.

Scalacci would be one of the key players in the events that would unfold later that evening. France, however, were unable to convert early dominance into goals. The Irish made them pay. Irish captain Robbie Keane scored on thirty-three minutes to level the aggregate score at 1-1. As the half-time interval arrived, the Irish were full of confidence. They'd scored a crucial away goal, were creating chances, and goalkeeper Shay Given had been largely untroubled. The Irish took that confidence into the second half and could have scored another vital away goal but defender John O'Shea fired over. Another away goal and the French would need two goals to go through. Minutes later, Damien Duff forced French goalkeeper Hugo Loris into action when through on goal. The French were stirred into action but the ninety minutes elapsed with the teams deadlocked at 1-1. The game was heading into extra time. After an exhaustive effort from the Irish, it was perhaps no surprise that it was the host that started extra time on the offensive. In the seventh minute of extra time, Nicholas Anelka is through on goal with only keeper Given given to beat. He dinks the ball past him and goes down. The French are claiming a penalty, but much like the first leg, their protests are waved away by Swedish referee Martin Hansen. The French may well have felt aggrieved that in two successive games in this tie, penalty decisions went against them. But the controversy surrounding those incidents would be dwarfed by the one that was about to erupt as the end of the first period of extra time approached. It would enter footballing infamy and go down as one of the most controversial moments in modern football history. That the main protagonist in this incident was one of the most admired figures in the game made it all the more galling.

Thierry Henry was a generational talent that lit up the English game like few before him or since. As a young talent, he was signed by Monaco, then managed by Arsene Wenger. Wenger would prove instrumental in later years in developing Henry into the world-class player he would go on to become. Henry quickly rose through the ranks. He was named French Young Footballer of the Year in 1996 and helped Monaco to the Ligue one title in 1996-97. A year later, Henry was part of the French squad that lifted the World Cup on home soil. Italian giants Juventus lured Henry to Turin in January 1999, but he failed to settle and just six months later arrived at Arsenal to join manager and compatriot Arsene Wenger. The Premier League would never quite be the same again. Henry's seven-year spell at Arsenal saw him win almost every domestic club and individual honour in the game. He also finished his Arsenal career as the club's record goal scorer with 228 goals. In 2021, Thierry Henry, along with Alan Shearer, became the first players to be inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame. The award cemented his place as a footballing icon in England. A member of the WorldCup and European Championship winning squads of 1998 and 2000, forever secured his legendary status in his native France. His image, however, would forever be tarnished in Ireland after the events that took place at the Parc de France. Just before half time, in the first period of extra time, France are awarded a free kick. Floron Malouda plays the ball hopefully into the Irish penalty area. The ball is missed by a crowd of players, eventually falling to Henry. The French captain stops the ball from going out of play with his hand. And brings the ball under control with a second use of the hand before squaring the ball to William Gallas to score a crucial goal for the French at a crucial time. The Irish team are incensed and immediately surround the referee. The assistant referee has not flagged for any infringement. The goal stands. Both Gallas and Henry look sheepish as they walk back to the halfway line. Giovanni Trapattoni is furious and angrily remonstrates with a fourth official, but the referee has made his decision and there is no going back. France hold their nerve in the second period of extra time and book their place at the 2010 World Cup finals. The Irish are left to reflect on what could have been. The official at the centre of the drama, Swedish referee Martin Hansen, was unaware of the controversy that would soon engulf him as the match officials return to their dressing room. Indeed, Hansen is quoted as saying that he thought he had, “one of the best games of my career” . That view, however, quickly disappeared once a FIFA official had informed him of the crucial error. It's reported that Hansen broke down completely. Irish Football Association officials also visited the referee, not to confront him, but to shake his hand. As far as the IFA official was concerned, although the officials had made a mistake in not spotting the handball, blame for the incident lay squarely at the door of Thierry Henry, who he accused of cheating. At a post-match interview, Henry admitted the ball had struck his hand, but denied it was deliberate. Inevitably, the controversy reignited the debate surrounding video technology. Indeed, Thierry Henry put out a statement supporting the idea of a replay, albeit after FIFA had rejected the FIA's request. Henri was at pains to point out that while he admitted to handling the ball, it was not intentional. That did not wash with people in Ireland, nor did it with match referee Martin Hansen. The Swedish referee faced death threats and had to leave his home along with his family including his two sons, aged nine and eleven at the time. Whilst Hansen admits that both he and his assistant failed to spot Henry’s handball, he also raised important questions about player honesty and how the issue of cheating is directly linked to refereeing controversies. In a 2019 interview, some ten years after the incident, Hansen said, “it could never happen now. Not just because of VAR but also because within half a year they appointed the additional assistant referees behind the goals. It was the Henry incident that meant them starting that project. Of course, if we had the technology in place back then, it would have been better for everyone. But what I would really like to ask is, where is the discussion about players cheating? It's not a very big discussion, is it? If the referee makes a mistake, the television company wants to speak to the referee to ask what happened. Never though will they put a big star in front of the cameras and ask, can you please watch this screen here? You are obviously cheating. So what are you wanting to say about that? I've never heard that question”. Hansen has not met Henry since that night in 2009. Asked what he would say to him if he did meet him, “I won't speak with him”. The Henry handball incident increased the pressure on FIFA to introduce video technology to the game. In an unprecedented move, FIFA president Sepp Blatter announced that the game had arrived, “at a crossroads”. And even though he was implacably against the introduction of video technology, recognized that the forthcoming World Cup would beamed to a worldwide television audience using thirty-two cameras. It was impossible for a referee and two assistants to see what everyone else was seeing. To that end, FIFA announced that they would conduct an inquiry into the possible use of technology and additional officials.

Additional assistant referees were being trialed in the UEFA Europa League for the 2009-2010 season. However, Blatter ruled out the use of AARs for the World Cup as the trial was still in its infancy. Much like his compatriot had unwittingly done four years ago, Thierry Henry had played a key role in moving forward the debate surrounding football and video technology. Whereas Zinedine Zidane's moment of madness had no immediate impact on the result of the game, Thierry Henry's actions on that night at the Parc de Prince immediately led to a goal, a vitally important goal. The debate surrounding refereeing and the use of video technology also masked a fundamental problem facing the game, the issue of fair play. Or lack of within the sometimes not so beautiful game. It's an issue that Martin Hansen knows only too well. FIFA and the game of football moved on despite the growing clamour for the introduction of video technology. FIFA president Sepp Blatter remained unconvinced even after the Henri Handball. But all that would change only six months later when England came face to face with arch rivals Germany in the knockout stages of the 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa. England, Germany, the World Cup, and a controversial goal. Football had come full circle.

“Milner, Defoe, that's a lovely touch. Lampard! Brilliant!

That surely crossed the line!”