PGMOL Referee Michael Salisbury
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The Professional Game Match Officials Board (PGMOL) have made a late change to the officiating team for Sunday’s Premier League clash between Liverpool and Arsenal, removing Michael Salisbury from his role as video assistant referee following a controversial incident in Chelsea’s 2-0 win over Fulham.
Salisbury has been replaced by John Brooks after his intervention at Stamford Bridge on Saturday drew heavy criticism. Fulham thought they had taken the lead when 18-year-old Josh King found the net, only for referee Robert Jones to rule the goal out following a pitchside review prompted by Salisbury.
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The VAR advised a check for a foul by Rodrigo Muniz on Trevoh Chalobah in the build-up, but replays suggested the contact was minimal.
VAR official Michael Salisbury has been dropped from the Liverpool and Arsenal game after the PGMOL said it was a mistake for the video assistant referee to disallow Fulham’s opening goal at Chelsea on Saturday. pic.twitter.com/ztcY9pzX6C
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) August 31, 2025
PGMOL later admitted Salisbury’s intervention was an error, with head of refereeing Howard Webb personally contacting Fulham to acknowledge the mistake. The disallowed goal proved a turning point in the match, as Chelsea went on to win through strikes from João Pedro and Enzo Fernández.
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Fulham manager Marco Silva expressed frustration at the decision, describing it as “unbelievable” and accusing VAR of overstepping its role.
“In the first half I saw my team playing outstanding football,” Silva said. “To disallow a goal like that is unbelievable. We have all the meetings with the people in charge and they say VAR is not here to referee the game. But the decisions made a massive impact.”
The removal of Salisbury is the latest example of PGMOL taking swift action against officials following high-profile mistakes, with Sunday’s Liverpool–Arsenal clash considered one of the marquee fixtures of the Premier League season.
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