Will there ever come a time when Premier League fans and players alike don't bemoan the shambles that can be the VAR system?The refereeing aid has been around for several seasons now and yet still feels like it is bedevilled with a crippling range of teething problems.The offside rule continues to be the straw that breaks the proverbial camel's back for fans, with decisions seeming to swing on the whim of whomever is running the cameras on a given day.Marcus Rashford was given the benefit of the doubt in a tight offside call against Liverpool but other decisions, that look almost identical in scope, have gone against the attacker.You can hardy blame fans for feeling a little wearied whenever the dreaded 'VAR Check' is emblazoned across the big screens in the stadiums or a commentator ominously warns that the goal hasn't been awarded just yet.Of course, there have been times when the system has done exactly what it says on the tin, preventing and reversing some absolute howlers from referees and their assistants.

In truth, there can't be many a football fan out there that hasn't at one point or another, been incredibly grateful for the intervention of the folks down at Stockley Park.

Sadly, while the on-paper mantra of the VAR system does make a lot of sense, we can't help but grieve what it has taken from the game.

There is a raw, on-the-edgeness to football that seems to have been stolen from the game by the science and matter-of-factness of VAR.

NOTTINGHAM, ENGLAND - AUGUST 14: Match referee Robert Jones checks a VAR screen during the Premier League match between Nottingham Forest and West Ham United at City Ground on August 14, 2022 in Nottingham, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)

Instead of unadulterated joy in the crazy moments following a crucial goal, fans find themselves worryingly checking if the referee is receiving a message in his ear about something that needs checking.

Never has the effect VAR has had on football been better summed up than by BBC commentator Steve Wilson following a Harry Kane strike in 2021.

While the much-maligned system performed its mandatory checks over a goal for which Kane was clearly onside, Wilson lamented that 'miserable geometry' was once again getting involved.

Check out his comments in the clip below:

Well put, sir.

It is hard to see whether or not we will ever find a happy medium. Of course VAR has its moments and, at times, it gets hammered with a lot of flak that is largely undeserved.

Even still, you just can't help but feel down in your heart that there simply has to be a better way for the game going forward.