Webb Defends Var Ruling Out Liverpool Equaliser Against Manchester City

Howard Webb has said officials did not enactment unreasonably successful denying Liverpool an equaliser against Manchester City past weekend, but stopped short of calling nan arguable determination correct.

Virgil van Dijk’s header was disallowed by nan referee Chris Kavanagh, and not overturned by nan video adjunct Michael Oliver, aft Andy Robertson was adjudged to person had an effect connected nan City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma while opinionated successful an offside position.

The telephone was wide criticised aft nan game, pinch Liverpool subsequently writing to Webb’s PGMO organisation to situation nan decision.

The offside rule allows for referees to penalise a player, moreover if they do not touch nan ball, if they are adjudged to beryllium interfering pinch an force by “making an evident action which intelligibly impacts connected nan expertise of an force to play nan ball”.

Speaking connected Referees Mic’d Up, nan regular TV reappraisal of officials’ caller decisions, Webb was challenged by nan presenter Michael Owen, pinch nan erstwhile Liverpool prima saying he was “strongly of nan opinion” that nan extremity should person stood.

Webb, successful unpacking nan officials’ reasoning process, admitted that “only Donnarumma genuinely knows if he was impacted by this”, but said location was capable contributory grounds to lead Kavanagh to return nan action he did, pinch Robertson’s ducking retired of nan measurement of nan shot a cardinal action.

“It’s not unreasonable to understand why they would shape that conclusion [of disallowing nan goal] erstwhile nan subordinate is truthful adjacent to nan goalkeeper, nan ball’s coming correct towards him, and [Robertson] has to duck to get retired of nan measurement of nan ball,” Webb said. “They shape nan conclusion that it impacts Donnarumma’s expertise conscionable to dive towards nan shot and make that save.”

After Owen suggested that Robertson’s determination to duck really appeared an effort to debar having an effect connected nan play, Webb said: “That action could still origin hesitation from nan goalkeeper. Goalkeepers activity from reactions that make it imaginable to propulsion retired immoderate unthinkable saves. And that’s nan judgement formed connected nan field.” Oliver could person overturned Kavanagh’s telephone only had he thought nan referee had made a “clear and obvious” error.

After nan lucifer nan Liverpool manager, Arne Slot, had compared nan Robertson telephone to a akin determination that went successful Manchester City’s favour against Wolves past play erstwhile a John Stones extremity was awarded contempt Bernardo Silva being offside and adjacent to nan keeper successful nan six‑yard box.

Asked by Owen to reappraisal that footage, Webb said it was a different lawsuit arsenic Silva had been down nan Wolves goalkeeper José Sá and moving distant from him. “I deliberation there’s a clear quality successful that nan shot goes straight complete nan goalkeeper Jose Sa’s caput [before Silva tin make an impact],” Webb said. “It doesn’t spell complete nan caput successful nan measurement it went complete nan caput of Robertson, who ducked beneath it. Importantly, Silva moves to nan near distant from nan formation of nan shot and nan shot goes consecutive complete nan keeper.”