In a shocking turn of events, it’s reported the VAR from last weekend’s Merseyside Derby, David Coote, forgot he could review the incident involving Jordan Pickford and Virgil van Dijk, which resulted in the Dutchman needing ACL surgery.
The official rules state the referee was allowed to take a second look at the challenge, despite the earlier offside call – but he didn’t.
According to the Daily Mail, Coote checked the offside ‘forensically‘ and believed it nullified everything from that point forward as a new phase of play, so he didn’t review the challenge on van Dijk.
MORE: Liverpool ask Premier League to review use of VAR in Merseyside Derby – report
Liverpool are demanding an explanation on PGMOL’s handling of the incident, with the champions said to believe the Premier League are more interested in briefing their version of events instead of communicating.
Earlier this week, the Guardian also claimed the Reds have asked for a review of the use of VAR at Goodison Park to get an explanation as to why Sadio Mane was adjudged offside in a separate incident, ruling out Jordan Henderson’s last-minute match-winner.
Simply having a virtual assistant doesn’t mean decisions are faultless, and since the introduction of the extra level of officiating we’ve never seen more controversy. The VAR, Coote in this instance, is only human and prone to errors, but incompetence at the highest level of football in England isn’t acceptable.