Howard Webb made an effort to let everyone know that he’s now in charge of the refereeing in the Premier League but the man who held the role before him has been critical of his performance.
Speaking with BBC Radio Merseyside, Keith Hackett said: “I can’t believe after five years, that there isn’t a clear process and a check system that then goes back to the referee and says why they aren’t awarding a goal”.
The 79-year-old who left his role as General Manager of the PGMOL in 2009, clearly think that this rule should have been introduced to the game by now – something which his fellow ex-ref would have a huge say on occurring.
READ MORE: After 65 hours of waiting, Liverpool receive PGMOL response about VAR audio
If the conversation from the VAR for the goal that was wrongfully disallowed on Luis Diaz sounded something like: “Check complete, Diaz onside – goal given” then this whole debacle would be over.
Instead, uttering just the first two words of this sentence mean that a mistake can occur in the most unique of circumstances – which just so happened to have occurred at the expense of us.
It’s clear that Liverpool Football Club want real change to occur because of this error from Darren England and that could mean that the way in which decisions are communicated is altered.
VOTE for Empire of the Kop as Best Club Content Creator (Premier League) here: Football Content Awards
OR on X with Empire’s one-click X link with: I am voting in @The_FCAs for @empireofthekop in Best Club Content Creator (Premier League)
When former heads of the organisation that controls the officials in the country start criticising those currently in a high position of power, it shows that a great job isn’t being done.
The former South Yorkshire Police Sergeant has made a deliberate ploy to be recognised as the most senior official in the game and this needs to come alongside improved results, something which clearly isn’t happening.
You can listen to Hackett’s full comments via @bbcmerseysport on X:
💬 "I can't believe after five years, that there isn't a clear process and a check system that then goes back to the referee and says why they aren't awarding a goal"
⚽️ @HACKETTREF spoke to #TotalSport tonight after the weekend's VAR controversy
🎧 More on @BBCSounds ⤵️
— BBC Sport Merseyside (@bbcmerseysport) October 2, 2023