Liverpool 3-0 defeat at Manchester City on Sunday was somewhat overshadowed by a refereeing controversy that has prompted the club to formally raise concerns with PGMOL, according to journalist James Pearce.
The incident came midway through the first half when Virgil van Dijk appeared to have headed Liverpool level from a corner, only for the goal to be ruled out after VAR intervention. Officials judged that Andy Robertson, standing in an offside position, had interfered with play.
Liverpool Make Complaint to PGMOL Over Man City Incident
andy robertson
According to journalist James Pearce, Liverpool have made a complaint to PGMOL following 'serious concerns' about Van Dijk's disallowed goal. The respected reporter says that PGMOL's reasoning 'doesn't stack up', with the Reds now in contact with chief Howard Webb over the incident.
Liverpool clearly dispute the interpretation that Robertson was standing in the way of Gianluigi Donnarumma, with the Scottish defender ducking out of the way with the ball always likely to fly into the corner as it did.
Their argument centres on Law 11 of the IFAB Laws of the Game, which defines offside offences as criteria-based. Liverpool believe Robertson did not obstruct goalkeeper Donnarumma’s line of vision, nor make a play for the ball, and therefore did not meet the conditions required for an offside infringement. Although Man City went on to win the game, the timing of the goal was crucial.
At 1-0 down, Van Dijk’s header would have levelled proceedings and potentially altered the momentum of the match. Instead, City doubled their lead through Nico Gonzalez just minutes later, before Jeremy Doku sealed the result in Pep Guardiola’s 1,000th game as a manager. The assistant referee gave the decision on the pitch, meaning VAR were forced to look and potentially intervene, but they stuck with the offside given by the linesman during the game.How the PGMOL will deal with the situation remains to be seen, but we have seen in the past that they are open to admitting errors in their judgement when they feel right to do so.