Paul Tierney has been appointed to the officiating team for Nottingham Forest’s upcoming clash with Liverpool, returning to the fixture for the first time since his 2024 dropped-ball error.
On that occasion, his decision sparked a post-match confrontation and a subsequent FA charge for Forest coach Steven Reid.
Tierney was in control of the Forest defeat away at Wrexham in this season’s FA Cup, with the Reds being beaten on penalties by the Championship outfit.
Now, Forest will switch their focus to Liverpool one tonight’s game with Fenerbahce is out of the way and Tierney will be back involved in a Premier League game involving the Reds this weekend.
Paul Tierney oversees Nottingham Forest vs Liverpool
Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images
Paul Tierney involved in Nottingham Forest vs Liverpool
It’s quite remarkable that Tierney is going to be involved in a Forest match for the first time since that day in 2024, and it comes against the same opposition.
Tierney won’t be at the City Ground, however, with the official handed responsibility of VAR, and instead, he will be stationed down at Stockley Park.
The referee for the fixture will hardly delight the Forest fan base any more than if it was actually Tierney on the field with the whistle in his hand.
Anthony Taylor is the man in charge of the contest and it’s fair to say that since Forest won promotion he’s got a chequered history when it comes to reffing the Reds.
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With Forest looking set to secure a vital point at the City Ground, Darwin Nunez struck in the ninth minute of added time to leave the Reds shellshocked.
It should all have been prevented, however, with Tierney incorrectly giving the ball back to goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher following an injury to a Liverpool player.
Prior to the game being stopped for a head injury, Callum Hudson-Odoi had possession of the ball outside of the box, so, in law, Forest should have restarted the game from that position.
Instead, he allowed Kelleher to get the ball forward, with Nunez subsequently scoring to stun Forest and send the Liverpool faithful into raptures.
After the incident, the PGMOL issued an apology, stood Tierney down for a short period, and Reid was left banned for his comments to the referee following the late winner for Liverpool.
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