Gary Neville dished out praise for Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk on Sunday evening for comments he made after his side’s loss to Man City, but Leeds United boss Daniel Farke did the exact opposite.
After Leeds-born Erling Haaland had atoned for his missed penalty to put Man City ahead with a header, van Dijk thought he had equalised. A brilliant header from a Liverpool corner, bulleted into the corner.
But incredibly, VAR ruled out van Dijk’s goal. Andy Robertson was deemed in the line of the shot and while doing so, was in an offside position. However, Robertson is not in Gianluigi Donnarumma’s eye line.
A remarkable decision that could have seen van Dijk lose his head in front of reporters after the match. A goal that would have seen Liverpool equalise at City. Yet, van Dijk chose to brush away the question.
Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville.
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Leeds boss Daniel Farke did the exact opposite to Virgil van Dijk
As per the Liverpool Echo, Anfield favourite van Dijk said when asked about his disallowed goal: “I think the goal should have stood, that is all I will say. But I am not the one who is making the decisions.”
The decision not to comment on the goal was praised by Gary Neville on his Sky Sports podcast. The former England right-back said he was right not to comment because his side had been easily beaten.
“From what van Dijk just said on here, he said he doesn’t really want to talk about it. That’s the right approach. When you’ve lost 3-0 and you’ve been well beaten, don’t whinge about a refereeing decision.”
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Meanwhile, Daniel Farke did the exact opposite. Leeds were soundly beaten in a concerning fashion. Yet, Farke chose not to shoulder blame. Instead, he blamed Jarred Gillett for a foul given against Anton Stach.
Gillett gave a foul against Stach on Neco Williams near the touchline, and 20 seconds later, Forest went 2-1 up. But the ball has had to travel over 50 yards before Morgan Gibbs-White headed past Lucas Perri.
Nottingham Forest v Leeds United - Premier League
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Farke thinks it should have been a free-kick to Leeds: “First of all, a mistake from the referee. I think he was the only one in the whole stadium who saw a foul from Stach. Actually, it was a foul against him.”
For Neville to praise van Dijk for not “whinging” about a decision when Liverpool had been easily beaten, he would have to accuse Farke of the same thing, given Farke complained despite Forest’s dominance.
What Mark Clattenburg thought of the Anton Stach decision
Speaking to LeedsUnited.News, former Premier League referee Clattenburg said that while Leeds might have been unlucky not to win a free-kick, it was one that Gillett could have given for either side.
“I understand the frustration of the Leeds United coach, but it’s not a major mistake from the referee and could have easily been defended,” Clattenburg told us, after hearing of Farke’s quotes on the decision.
Daniel Farke arrives at Elland Road for a Championship clash between Leeds United and Burnley
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Ultimately, it is another loss, and the pressure on Farke has increased. However, for Leeds fans hoping to see an announcement from the club confirming the end of Farke’s tenure, they will be made to wait.
Graham Smyth reports that nothing is imminent in terms of sacking Farke, with the 49ers putting their faith in the German despite the dismal defeat. Things don’t look like they will get easier for Leeds, though.
Indeed, Leeds have a very tough run of fixtures coming after the break, starting with Aston Villa at Elland Road. Then, Leeds face Man City away, before returning to Elland Road to host Chelsea and Liverpool.