The Video Assistant Referee (VAR) officials involved when Liverpool were wrongly denied a goal in Saturday's 2-1 Premier League defeat at Tottenham Hotspur have not been included for this weekend in the list of officials released on Tuesday.
The referees' body, Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), admitted it was the wrong decision to disallow Luis Diaz's effort, blaming human error, and "should have resulted in the goal being awarded through VAR intervention".
¡POLÉMICA EN EL TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR!
Luis Díaz había marcado, pero fue anulado por fuera de lugar…¿Es o no es? ¡Juzga tú mismo! #Tottenham 0-0 #Liverpool
EN VIVO por @NBCUniverso y Telemundo APP ➡️ https://t.co/DdFks5kRCM#LigaPremierTD pic.twitter.com/v9xHhe5R6j
— Telemundo Deportes (@TelemundoSports) September 30, 2023
Official PGMOL statement. Corruption. pic.twitter.com/H6iTmwZJzl
— The Anfield Talk (@TheAnfieldTalk) September 30, 2023
@PremierLeague release official VAR audio from Luis Diaz's disallowed goal vs Tottenham.
Full statement: https://t.co/buvq5mG2q3 pic.twitter.com/a8zjGgcOCO— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) October 3, 2023
PGMOL announced on Sunday that Darren England and his VAR assistant Dan Cook had been replaced for their games last Sunday and Monday in the wake of the controversy, and the pair will have no involvement in this weekend's matches.
Liverpool released a statement on Sunday saying it was clear the rules of the game were not applied correctly, which undermined sporting integrity, adding that they would explore the options available for resolution.
Liverpool Football Club acknowledges PGMOL’s admission of their failures last night.
It is clear that the correct application of the laws of the game did not occur, resulting in sporting integrity being undermined.— Liverpool FC (@LFC) October 1, 2023
The on-field referee from the Liverpool game, Simon Hooper, and the fourth official, Michael Oliver, have both been selected for weekend duties.
(Reporting by Trevor Stynes; Editing by Ken Ferris)
