Gary Neville insists glaring VAR error in Tottenham’s win over Liverpool ‘isn’t a sackable offence’ and calls on critics to ‘be human’ in their analysis of officials
Gary Neville described the VAR error in Tottenham’s 2-1 win over Liverpool on Saturday as “very bad”, but urged critics to be “human” when directing their emotions at the officials involved .
PGMOL confirmed on Sunday morning that Darren England and Dan Cook have been ruled out of upcoming matches due to errors in Saturday’s matches against Spurs and Liverpool.
Luis Diaz appeared to have put Jurgen Klopp’s side ahead before his first-half goal was controversially ruled out for offside following a VAR review.
It was later reported that the decision was the result of poor communication between on-field officials and VAR.
Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou admits he is not a fan of the post-match video review system, despite it benefiting his team and Neville has now weighed in oPosting on his X account – formerly Twitter – the Manchester United legend slammed the decision-making in the match but insisted it ‘isn’t a sackable offence’.
‘The VAR mistake was a really bad one. However we’ve all been demanding quicker decisions and I think they have tried to enforce speed in decision making.
‘Speed will cause inaccuracy and it’s now about a rebalance. – the two officials have been taken off their next games. Imagine how they feel this morning and let’s be human.
‘There should be consequence for such errors but in my opinion a couple of games out is more than enough.
‘Think of it as a player suspension for a sending off. This isn’t a sackable offence by any stretch so let’s remove that language – Sorry doesn’t mean anything. It does. It’s an important value all our parents have tried to instill in us.
‘Taking responsibility and owning your mistakes is important and should be valued. – finally enjoy your Sunday and I look forward to the abuse for this tweet,’ he added.n the debate.
Former players and pundits are still furious at the offside decision that prevented Liverpool from scoring, with Richard Keys criticizing PGMOL’s decision to name Darren England in the match just days after he participated in a match in Saudi Arabia.
Meanwhile, former Liverpool star Ryan Babel mocked referee Simon Hooper after the match.
Red Devils boss Klopp was furious with the referee, who also saw Liverpool reduced to nine men after Curtis Jones and Diogo Jota were sent off, saying after the match:
“No one expects 100% fair decisions on the field. I think we all thought that the arrival of VAR could make things easier.
“I don’t know why people act under such great pressure. Today the decision to score a goal was made very quickly. This changed the dynamics of the game.
