Premier League refereeing has been branded as ‘unforgiveable’ amid further VAR controversy over the weekend for Liverpool.
Darren England and Dan Cook were at the centre of controversy surrounding VAR following their roles at Stockley Park on Saturday for the Reds’ clash in North London against Spurs, who beat their nine-man opponents 2-1 thanks to a last-gasp Joel Matip own goal.
The storm was created by the wrong decision to disallow Luis Diaz’s goal as the Colombian raced behind the Tottenham backline after 34 minutes, firing past Vicario to hand Liverpool the lead – and despite a prompt flag raise from the linesman, the check from the video assistant referee was quick and on broadcasts around the world, no offside lines were drawn.
In light of the defeat, the PGMOL acknowledged there was “significant human error” in ruling out Diaz’s first-half strike.
ECHO readers have now responded strongly to England and Cook stepping down for the remainder of the weekend following the drama where they were taken off their respective match duties.
Here’s what some of our readers had to say on the officials standing down:
Robmar0135 – Not good enough it was gross misconduct from all the officials should face instant dismissal
MyLFC – Do not know why PL referees are so poor. Extremely unlikely mistakes have happened so many times in PL. Not much controversial goals have been seen in the World Cup last year or in UCL. PL should think about hiring referees from other countries, at least it can minimise bias.
Niteowl64 – Standing them down doesn’t work. It has been done before but they don’t get any better. Sack them and attempt to find better ones. The best league in the world with the poorest officials.
Iantb0070 – What happens if, at the end of the season we, Liverpool, lose the title race by 1 point?
Beepbeep – Stood down? They all have to be investigated and then eventually sacked surely? This is gross misconduct and an extreme lack of duty at their roles. In any other walk of life it’s a sackable offence….a straight red!
It was an unforgivable display of officiating and the EPL and PGMOL have to show the world how serious they are about this dark stain that has appeared on their already tarnished reputation.
The only way the PGMOL can redeem some dignity they have left is to replay the game. We all know that won’t happen, but I seriously can’t think of anything else.
Liverpool paul – To be honest although it’s not spurs fault if both these red cards are squashed and due to this horrific error then this game should be void and a replay ordered
Eaglehu12 – VAR conversations should be open and listened to by everyone in the stadium and watching the game, then everything is transparent and they cannot hide any bias or corruption
MJ68 – You make significant mistakes like that and you’re only stood down for a week. Absolutely disgraceful. They should miss a month. It’s the only way the league we are going to get officials as good as the players.
The ECHO understands that Liverpool have been issued with a £25,000 fine, having received eight cards in the capital. With such a financial penalty automatic, there is no charge to answer and there will be no statement from the FA. Tottenham won’t be fined as they only received five bookings.
It remains to be seen if any Reds players will be charged for their comments on social media after the game. Mac Allister was one such player, after he commented ‘Normal when you have 12 players’ on a post from Tottenham Hotspur defender and fellow Argentina international Christian Romero..
Such comments could potentially be perceived to breach FA Rule E3.1, which is designed to strike a balance between allowing freedom of speech while also protecting the integrity and reputation of the game.
