Premier League release statement after Liverpool v Tottenham incident
Liverpool can seal the Premier League title against Tottenham and are in complete command at the halfway stage.
Dominic Solanke netted an early opener for the visitors to put Arne Slot’s side 1-0 down and temporarily dampen celebrations.
It was a shock for many fans in the stadium, with the Reds expected to stroll to the title against a struggling Spurs side who were sat 16th at kick-off.
However, it only took the hosts four minutes to have the ball in the back of the net when Luis Diaz bundled in an equaliser
The goal was originally given as ruled out by the linesman, but now the Premier League has explained why VAR overturned the decision.
Premier League explain why VAR overturned Diaz’s equaliser
It was a brilliant goal by Liverpool as a fantastic pass from Mohamed Salah found the feet of Dominik Szoboszlai.
From here, the Hungarian put the ball on a plate for Diaz to tap it home for the all-important equaliser.
However, the linesman quickly flagged for offside as he thought that Salah had played the pass to Szoboszlai illegally.
VAR checked the goal and deemed that the Hungarian was actually onside before he slid the ball into Diaz.
A statement from the Premier League said: “VAR checked the referee’s call of no goal for Liverpool – and determined that Szoboszlai was in an onside position in the build-up and recommended that the goal was awarded.”
VAR rescues Liverpool on their way to the Premier League title
After Spurs’ early opener, it could have been a long day for Slot’s side.
With only one point required to win the title, there was an expectation that the club would be Premier League champions by the days end.
However, after the early goal, the match could have become a slog as tensions rose in desperation.
It was therefore highly important that the equaliser came quickly to disperse any hopes that Tottenham could hang on for a win.
Thankfully, VAR was on hand to ensure that Diaz’s goal was rightly given and put the Reds on course for the title once again.
VAR has saved Liverpool multiple times this season, but this decision will likely be remember by the Anfield faithful for a long time.