Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher has provided his verdict on the contentious incident moments before Liverpool took the lead against Newcastle on Saturday.
A strong James Milner tackle on Fabian Schar won the Reds possession of the ball before Naby Keita and Diogo Jota exchanged passes.
The No. 8 rounded the ‘keeper and scored the only goal of the game and Gallagher agreed with referee Andre Marriner’s decision to let play continue.
“I think what they did was letting a lot of right things go,” the 64-year-old told Sky Sports (via Newcastle Mag).
“I didn’t think this was a foul. This was a 12.30 game on Saturday, sets a precedent for the weekend.
“I think that is a really good tackle (by Milner), I think he wins the ball and then Schar goes into him, that’s why he goes over. Not a foul for me and I think that set the tone for the weekend and I think it was a really really good level.
“As I say, he didn’t win the ball and then go through Schar, if you watch, he (Milner) wins the ball, then Schar connects with him and goes over. Not a foul.”
Although it was a full-blooded tackle from the Milner, our No. 7 clearly won the ball.
It would’ve been a huge surprise if VAR decided to disallow the goal.
The game has changed and it does sometimes feel that the physicality of the game is gradually reducing, but to see Marriner allow play to continue was great to see.
If we hadn’t have scored moments later, we’re not sure the tackle would’ve been spoken about at all.
Milner put in a superb performance in the centre of the park and it’s been reported recently that the 36-year-old has been offered a new 12-month deal at the club.
It would be great to see the veteran remain on Merseyside, he’s an important figure both on and off the pitch and has a huge influence on some of the younger lads in the squad.