Referee Darren England will not be allowed to officiate Liverpool matches for the rest of this season following a VAR mistake that affected their recent Premier League game against Tottenham Hotspur, according to the Telegraph.
However, England will not face job termination as he still has the support of Howard Webb, the chief refereeing officer.
The controversy stemmed from a VAR decision during Liverpool’s 2-1 loss to Tottenham, where Luis Diaz’s goal was incorrectly disallowed.
This mistake has raised significant concerns about the VAR process, leading Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp to request a replay of the match.
The Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) has decided to exclude England and assistant VAR Cook from the upcoming Premier League matches this weekend.
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There will be a review of the situation during the next round of appointments for matchday nine after the international break.
As a result of the error, England, who was once highly regarded by PGMOL, will face financial consequences, with approximately £1,200 in lost match fees being deducted from his annual salary of around £150,000.
He is also a FIFA-listed referee and has officiated matches in the Europa Conference League and Champions League. Howard Webb, who leads the PGMOL, has a different approach compared to his predecessor, Mike Riley.
Riley aimed to keep referees away from clubs where they made unpopular decisions, but Webb is moving away from that approach. It’s unlikely that England will be assigned to referee Liverpool matches or serve as VAR in their games in the near future.
The controversy in the recent match stemmed from a misunderstanding between England and on-field referee Hooper regarding Luis Diaz’s legitimate goal in the first half.
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England’s ‘check complete’ signal led Hooper to believe his initial ‘no goal’ decision was correct. Some pundits believe England should have stopped the game to reinstate the goal.
However, the VAR protocol doesn’t allow decisions to be changed after play resumes unless there are exceptional circumstances.
The International Football Association Board (IFAB), the governing body for the laws of the game, does not plan to alter the VAR protocol in response to this incident. They view it as a case of human error rather than a flaw in the rules.
