What do Premier League managers think about the Liverpool VAR controversy?

“I trust VAR. I trust the car, but not the driver.”

“That was a mistake. Accept.”

“I would be surprised if they went in that direction. This is a grave mistake, but it’s the humans who made that mistake.”

The hot topic in the Premier League this week was, of course, the VAR error involving Liverpool’s Luis Diaz last Saturday and the incorrectly ruled out first-half goal away to Tottenham Hotspur.

It has since been reported that Darren England, who was the VAR in Spurs’ eventual 2-1 win over Liverpool, will not be in charge of Spurs’ games for the remainder of the season.

The debate ranges from calls for VAR to be scrapped completely, to calls for more introspection, to Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp’s suggestion that the match be replayed.

The mistake was so serious that Professional Match Game Officials Limited (PGMOL), the governing body for referees and their assistants in England, sacked those responsible and issued a statement to the VAR team regarding Dias’s canceled goal. took the unprecedented step of releasing the audio. You can read its full transcript here.

PGMOL, alongside the Premier League, has also committed to regularly releasing in-game audio for field officials and VAR teams during this season.

So, since everyone else is weighing in on this issue, The Athletic We asked Premier League managers what they thought and whether it could set a worrying precedent where top-level officials could be removed from matches for certain teams.

One manager, who did not want to be named to speak freely about the matter, said he had given Simon Hooper a week after Wolves were denied a penalty against Manchester United on the opening weekend of the season in August. He said he felt the decision to remove him from the list was immediate and emotional. There is a lot of uncertainty among the referees, some of whom are very inexperienced.

He wonders if the rest of the referees suddenly became nervous, knowing that if they made a mistake, they would be next to be eliminated. In his view, from the early stages of the season there was huge pressure on match officials to get things right or face the consequences.

Here’s what his colleague said on the record…

“People make mistakes in life.”

Brentford manager comments on the possibility of England not playing Liverpool in 2023-24 thomas frank “I think it’s probably just this season, (and) he’ll be out next season as well. I don’t know.

“I don’t know exactly why they do that. Maybe after seven days they relieve the pressure to stay out of the spotlight and take a little breather and go again?” People make mistakes in life. So, if you fall off your horse or your bike, you have to get back on and ride again and learn from it. It’s okay to take a breather and go again. ”

“I trust VAR. I trust the car, but not the driver.”

Mauricio Pochettino He spoke candidly about refereeing and VAR, reiterating previous concerns about the use of technology in football officiating.

“It’s two different things,” the Chelsea coach said. “I trust VAR. I trust the car, but not the driver. That’s the problem.

“I was very critical from the beginning, many years ago (when VAR was first introduced). I think it’s a good decision. It’s important to take the time, so we can talk and debate whether the referee needs to be more involved to have the final say.”

Regarding Dias’ canceled goal, Pochettino added: We need to accept our mistakes. I don’t know if it was the right decision (to remove England from the Liverpool game). I can’t put myself in Liverpool’s shoes or VAR or referees’ shoes. Admittedly, it was difficult. I heard what happened and we were all watching and listening.

“I don’t know if it will set a precedent. I don’t know, but I think Liverpool could accept an apology. There are a lot of things that I don’t know how to react to if I’m not involved. Maybe I’m not involved. If I were Klopp, I’d stop the game right there. Maybe if I were Klopp, right?”

“We need to give support.”

Arsenal manager asked if this could set a problematic precedent Mikel Arteta said. It’s something we have no say in and no control over.

“I think they (PGMOL) are trying to make the best decisions, trying to protect the game, trying to get as much support as possible, and trying to be ruthless when they have to. At some point, we… We need to provide support and understand that mistakes happen. We (coaches and players) make mistakes too.

“Otherwise, I think the pressure would be so great that it would be difficult to cope with the pressure.”

“I would be surprised if they went in that direction.”

tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou He said he first learned about the VAR controversy after the Liverpool game, when journalists were talking about it in the post-match press conference.

Asked about his thoughts on whether England should continue to manage Liverpool this season, the Australian said: “I don’t know, and I don’t know if it’s decided yet.” “I would be surprised if they went in that direction. It’s a grave mistake, but it’s the humans who made that mistake. I don’t think we need anything that goes too far.

“When you hear that (audio), you think there’s a better way to convey a clear decision in a big situation like this. I hope that’s what they’re working on. They made a mistake. Not an individual.

“I think that’s a neglect of the game. It’s the same as me hanging a player out to dry just because he made a mistake. My role is to step in and help that player improve, and to say, ‘ It’s not like I’m never going to play again.”

“We want consistency and VAR has a role to play in contributing to that.”

manager of sheffield united paul heckingbottom He likened Dias’s canceled goal to a goal-line technical incident in a match between his club and Aston Villa in the 2019-20 season (see link below).

“In this case, and in the case of Sheffield United at Villa, the black-and-white moment is more of an operational one,” Heckingbottom said. “I heard that audio, and I think you’ve heard it too. Within seconds, everyone knows there’s an error, and once it’s black and white (like that), something is wrong. Show it’s broken. Everyone could see it.

“From our point of view, we want consistency and VAR has a role in that. It’s implemented like this. Liverpool example: it’s a goal and the powers that be have a long Over the years, I realized that that is the goal. Is there any intervention I can implement to make it right?”

“I hope everyone is in a place where they can direct everyone.”

wolves head coach Gary O’Neill When asked about the incident with Dias and VAR, he mostly kept his opinion to himself, but also said:

“This is the first time I’ve heard of it either, so I don’t really know. We’re hoping that we’re in a place[within the PGMOL pool]where everyone can command everyone.

“But I’m sure some people will work much longer than the 18 seconds I had in mind when you asked me! So I’m sure they’ll come up with a better solution than me.”

‘That was a mistake. accept’

manager of manchester city pep guardiola He urged people to move on and learn from last weekend’s events.

“I said this before the Leipzig game (City’s midweek Champions League game): That was a mistake. Accept it,” he said. “Humans make mistakes and VAR is there to reduce the mistakes humans make and so do we. “Hopefully it ends here and gets better. “The Premier League and VAR officials are committed to improving. I will try.

“The reason VAR was introduced is to make our game more correct and we hope it will be better in the future.”

“Before VAR was introduced, there were more mistakes than now.”

Earlier this week, Villa’s head coach spoke about the use of VAR in football. Unai Emery stated his belief that football can be improved through the use of technology to assist match officials.

“Before VAR, we made more mistakes than we do now,” Emery said. “Now we can accept small mistakes in VAR. And they are just small mistakes. Of course for Liverpool (in this case) it was a big mistake. But before VAR was introduced There were many more mistakes.

“I was listening to the conversations between the referees and they were worried about their mistakes but couldn’t react because the game restarted. Again, I accept it. But before VAR there was more ( There was a mistake.

“No (I don’t want the match to be replayed). I have to accept it, just like before VAR.”

(Top photo: Getty Images)