Former Germany captain Lothar Matthäus believes former players should be brought in to help Video Assistant Referees (VAR) following more high-profile controversies in the Bundesliga last weekend.

Bayern Munich clinched a 10th straight Bundesliga title after a 3-1 win over Borussia Dortmund on Saturday.

But the VAR did not intervene after a foul in the penalty box by Benjamin Pavard against Borussia Dortmund’s Jude Bellingham.

It was a foul which made him feel hard done by for the second Klassiker in a row.

The German Football Federation (DFB) has admitted to the refereeing error and also said RB Leipzig’s Nordi Mukiele should not have gotten away with kicking at Union Berlin’s Niko Gießelmann.

Matthäus labelled the mistakes “decisions that are simply no longer acceptable” in modern football.

“The reason we as former footballers can assess this better is because we ourselves have constantly been in these situations over the years,” the former Bayern Munich player stated. “We know what it looks like when you foul or are fouled, above all, we see it faster.”

Matthäus is, however, against abolishing the video referee. “That would be a step backward,” the 1990 world champion noted. “I do think that, on balance, more wrong decisions are prevented than before, and yet there is still room for improvement.”

(dpa/NAN)