‘Totally wrong’ – Ex-Premier League referees disagree over VAR decision in Sheffield United’s loss to Liverpool
Sheffield United were beaten 2-0 by Liverpool on Chris Wilder’s return to Bramall Lane
Former Premier League referee Keith Hackett believes Liverpool[1]‘s second goal in Wednesday’s 2-0 win over Sheffield United[2] should have been ruled out. Reds striker Darwin Nunez challenged Jayden Bogle after losing possession, with the striker planting his leading foot on the ball but bringing his trailing leg through the back of the Blades defender which knocked him to the turf. Referee Simon Hooper waved play on as Nunez crossed for the unmarked Dominik Szoboszlai to fire home past Wes Foderingham in second-half stoppage time.
The goal was checked by VAR[3] Michael Oliver, but he did not feel an error had been made as the goal stood. Taking to social media to reveal his surprise about the decision, Hackett said: “I am bemused that ref [Simon] Hooper and VAR [Michael] Oliver judged that this [Nunez tackle on Bogle] was not a foul. Totally wrong in law.”
Wilder, on his United return, vented his frustration about the decision after the game, and insisted a foul should have been given. “I was most disappointed with the tackle by the centre-forward on Jayden Bogle,” he told his post-match press conference. “Twenty-five years ago when I was playing, people would talk about it and say that’s a decent tackle. Might have been aimed at me, that, where you take the ball but you take the man.
“He’s wrapped his legs right around Jayden Bogle and it’s resulted in the second goal. I understand the second goal. I’m not a manager who’s just going to sit back.
“We opened up in the last 10 minutes, we made substitutions and we changed the formation late on. We knew it was going to go to that, and the boy’s found a fabulous finish. But I think it’s a foul.
I think there is a foul leading up to it where he jumps into Jack Robinson. It’s a foul.”
However, another ex-Premier League referee in Dermot Gallagher insisted the challenge was not a foul, as he agreed with Hooper and Oliver. He told Sky Sports ref watch:[4] “Nunez has quite clearly won the ball.
He gets all of the ball and gets it before he makes contact with Bogle. If that was a Sheffield United player going into the penalty area and he makes a tackle like that you would never expect a penalty to be given against him. “I think it’s a tackle, the referee sees it clearly and it was checked by the VAR afterwards.
Without doubt, Nunez clearly gets the ball first, comes away and Bogle goes over him, so for me it’s not a foul.”
References
- ^ Liverpool (www.thestar.co.uk)
- ^ Sheffield United (www.thestar.co.uk)
- ^ VAR (www.thestar.co.uk)
- ^ He told Sky Sports ref watch: (www.skysports.com)