body of a referee PGMOL has made available the complete audio from the VAR hub about the Luis Diaz goal that was wrongfully overturned in Saturday’s match between Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool.
Additionally, PGMOL has disclosed the following details:
We admitted in a statement that a serious human error had happened during the aforementioned game, which we recognize should have resulted in a goal being given by VAR intervention, as was revealed shortly after the final whistle on Saturday night.
“The VAR staff scrutinized every facet of the goal, as they do in all goal scenarios. The checking phase and process began after the goal had been ruled offside by the on-field officials, and it was properly carried out by the VAR. The kick-point choice and placement of the single 2D line on the foot of the second-most rear defender were both precise.
Without adding a second line, the image that was produced made it obvious that Luis Diaz was on board. The VAR accidentally confirmed the on-field judgment due to a momentary gap in focus and concentration. He miscommunicated “check complete” and lost sight of the on-field decision. He did this without exchanging words with the Assistant VAR (AVAR).
The game then instantly resumed. The original on-field decision had been offside, but this was never relayed to the on-field team at any point during the game, according to the Replay Operator and then the AVAR who queried the check-complete outcome with the VAR after a brief period.
PGMOL additionally made the following declaration:
“PGMOL can confirm that a review of the events that led to the Luis Diaz goal being mistakenly disallowed for offside in the Premier League game between Tottenham Hotspur FC and Liverpool FC has been conducted.
“We acknowledge that standards fell short of expectations and Liverpool was informed of the mistake as soon as the game was over.
“A full report, outlining the most important lessons learned and immediate steps made, as well as the audio between the on-field officials and the VAR team, has been sent to the Premier League. The Premier League shared it with Liverpool FC first, and then with all other Premier League Clubs.
Through a new training program that began this season and focuses on process and best practice for all VARs, AVARs, and Replay Operators in their specialized responsibilities, PGMOL is dedicated to improving VAR performance. Even if we have a handful of FIFA-recognized VARs, effort is still being done to develop a specialized pool of VAR experts.
“The VAR and AVAR in question were excluded from their last Premier League Match Round 7 matches and were not included in the appointments for this coming weekend’s Match Round 8 games.
In order to let match officials to officiate matches outside of FIFA or UEFA appointments, PGMOL and The FA have also agreed to reconsider the rules.
