Liverpool Football Club has officially raised concerns with the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) regarding the disallowed goal by Virgil van Dijk during their recent match against Manchester City. In the 38th minute, Van Dijk connected with a glancing header that almost leveled the match at 1-1. The would-be goal was ruled out for offside due to the position of teammate Andy Robertson.
The match, played at the Etihad Stadium, found Manchester City up 1-0 when the incident occurred. Those in charge at Liverpool are adamant the decision to disallow the goal was incorrect. They’re doing everything they can to make sure this doesn’t happen again in upcoming games.
The Controversial Decision
Virgil van Dijk jumping for a header from a corner kick. Even under those circumstances, his perfect shot hit the back of the net and seemed to have leveled the match! The assistant referee wasted no time flagging the goal offside. To his credit, he said that Andy Robertson had blocked goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma’s opportunity to make a play on the ball. Despite this ruling, Liverpool’s officials argue that Robertson did not obstruct Donnarumma’s line of sight.
Liverpool’s position has always been that this was a situation where Robertson ducked their player and did not try to play the ball. The attacking club argues that their player was not in a position to obstruct the goalkeeper. This position comes out against the legitimacy of the offside call itself.
Former referee and current analyst Dermot Gallagher offered up the reasoning behind the decision.
“This was an on-field decision, which was no goal. So VAR looks and says: ‘Is Robertson in an offside position? Yes. Is he impacting on the goalkeeper?’ They obviously felt yes, because he was close.” – Dermot Gallagher
Gallagher recognized that these decisions usually leave wide latitude for different interpretations. The frustrating part, he pointed out, is that there are no obvious answers in these cases.
Reactions from Players and Coaches
The fallout from the apparently no longer functional wrong goal scored has generated a good deal of discussion among players and coaches. Arne Slot, manager of Liverpool, expressed his disagreement with the decision, stating it was “obvious and clear that the wrong decision has been made.” He adamantly denied that Robertson had any impact on Donnarumma. He contended that this scenario could have massively affected the outcome of the game.
“I think it’s obvious and clear that the wrong decision has been made, at least in my opinion. Because he [Robertson] didn’t interfere at all with what the goalkeeper could do.” – Arne Slot
Jay Bothroyd, a former professional player, expressed his distress over the controversy on social media. He claimed Van Dijk’s first goal shouldn’t have been disallowed.
“This should have been given as a goal. When you look at Donnarumma, he is coming across slightly to his right but then he pivots to the left, so that means he can see where the ball is going.” – Jay Bothroyd
Bothroyd’s reaction indicates that even the most trained eyes on football had universally advocated that the goal should have survived. To prove their point, they take a look at the particulars of the play.
PGMOL’s Review Process and Future Implications
Since Liverpool made their protest to PGMOL public, the conversation about the incident has blown up. The issue was looked at in detail on Ref Watch, our weekly column focusing on breaking down officiating calls. Gallagher mentioned how the VAR team failed to check this exact call made in-game.
Gallagher’s encouraging insights show that officiating decisions are not consistent. This family craziness leads to never-ending fights between fans and teams.
“A player making an action, in my opinion, is if he moves towards the ball or he tries to make contact with the ball. Robertson has ducked. He’s made no effort to try to deflect the ball or get his head on it. He’s just got himself out of the way of the ball.” – Dermot Gallagher
Liverpool appears to be content with that as a final result in the match. They don’t want to see similar mistakes affect future releases. The club further wishes to strengthen lines of communication with PGMOL and would ask for clarity on the interpretations made during key moments of play.
Despite accepting the final result of the match, Liverpool is adamant about ensuring that such errors do not affect future games. The club aims to enhance communication with PGMOL and seeks clarity on interpretations made during critical moments of play.
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