Liverpool get nightmare referee – VAR official combination for boxing day trip to Burnley

Officials revealed for Liverpool away day at Burnley

The Reds are now aware of who will officiate the game between Burnley and Liverpool at Turf Moor on Boxing Day. Paul Tierney stands as the referee with Simon Hooper behind the scenes, managing VAR. The last two times Liverpool had this pair officiate a game ended with the Reds’ fans and players both unhappy.

Earlier this season, in our “loss” to Tottenham away from home, VAR ruled out a Luis Diaz goal for offside. Video analysis in the aftermath of the decision made it absolutely clear that the officials got the decision wrong and let play on saying they could not track back on the incident.

However, our recent visit to Selhurst Park made it evident that the refs can trackback play as they wasted very little time in awarding Crystal Palace a penalty for an incident well over two minutes before the referee headed towards the VAR screen.

Recent headlines surrounding Hooper involve a failure to play advantage during Manchester City’s 3-3 draw against Tottenham, denying Jack Grealish a chance to run through on goal. PGMOL chief Howard Webb later admitted it was an officiating mistake.

Ref Nightmare

Liverpool’s Boxing Day fixture against Burnley presents an opportunity to ascend to the top of the Premier League with a win, at least until Arsenal has the chance to reclaim the lead in their subsequent match against West Ham.

The officiating decisions have been a talking point for Liverpool this season. In their recent encounter with Arsenal, a denied penalty for a handball by Martin Odegaard left Jurgen Klopp expressing confusion over the decision, calling for an explanation on why it wasn’t given and why it wasn’t reviewed. We have lost nine points due to officiating errors this season. Hopefully, it remains nine until the end of the campaign.

As Liverpool approach the Boxing Day fixture, supporters hope the focus will shift from officiating decisions to the essence of the game itself.

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The narrative in recent games has shifted from football to matters out of the Reds’ control and the only way Liverpool can tackle that is by ensuring they play by the book, get the desired result and move on to the next. The refs will do what they always do. Best assume it will always be against us and ensure a positive result in such situations.