VAR switched off during Premier League game due to fire alarm causing chaos

Referee Anthony Taylor had to inform both Ipswich Town and Manchester United that VAR was temporarily unavailable due to a fire alarm at Stockley Park.

Marcus Rashford had already given United an early 1-0 lead after 81 seconds, before Taylor spoke with captains Sam Morsy and Bruno Fernandes towards the end of the first half to inform them that VAR was switched off. The system had to be abandoned following a fire alarm, but was later restored.

Fourth official Matt Donohue was also seen speaking to managers Ruben Amorim and Kieran McKenna to inform them of the VAR issues. Shortly after Taylor's on-field message, Omari Hutchinson fired Ipswich level with a deflected strike that found the top-left corner.

A statement from the Premier League Match Centre said: "The match will be operating without VAR until further notice due to a fire alarm at the VAR Hub at Stockley Park." It was quickly restored, and the second half is expected to run without any interruptions.

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It was an unusual start to life in the Premier League for new United head coach Amorim, who believes he can restore the club to its former glory. David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, and Erik ten Hag all failed to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson, but Amorim is extremely confident he can change the fortunes at Old Trafford.

"I'm a little bit of a dreamer," he said before facing Ipswich. "I believe in myself. I believe in the club, we have the same mindset. I truly believe in the players. I know you [the media] don't believe a lot but I do. I want to try new things.

"You guys don't think it's possible but I do. Call me naive, but I truly feel that I am the right man in the right moment. I could be wrong but the earth will turn and the sun will rise again, it doesn't matter, and I am not worried about that.

"I truly believe that I am the right guy for this job." When acknowledging the five coaches who have all failed before him, Amorim added: "We need a lot of time because it is a great league, the strongest league in the world, and we have to improve a lot in order to try to win it.

"What I can say is that we have to win games and, in time, then win titles. I think we have to improve the physical aspect of the team, it is something that we want to improve. I do not know how long it will take.

"You have had different types of coaches here, the guys that won everything like [Louis] van Gaal and [Jose] Mourinho. The new ones that know the club inside and out, like [Ole Gunnar] Solskjaer, and then one of the best managers there ever will be outside of the top-five strongest leagues, in [Erik] ten Hag.

"We have to acknowledge we need time, but we also have to win games, and that is it. You have different types of coaches, same result. We will try to do it in our way."