Liverpool boss Arne Slot said it was good to see the refereeing body PGMOL admit the decision not to send off Everton’s James Tarkowski in Wednesday’s derby was wrong, with the Dutchman adding that mistakes are not uncommon in the Premier League.
During Liverpool’s 1-0 win, Tarkowski won the ball in a challenge with Alexis Mac Allister but his studs-up follow-through caught the Argentine midfielder square on the calf.
Tarkowski was shown a yellow card with VAR not intervening.
Pundits and former referees said it was a clear red card and Slot was told at Thursday’s press conference that the Professional Game Match Officials Limited, PGMOL had acknowledged that Tarkowski should have been dismissed for serious foul play.
Referee Sam Barrott felt the challenge was reckless and a VAR check deemed that showing a yellow card was not a clear and obvious error. However, PGMOL felt a review should have been recommended and the original decision overturned.
“It is always good that if they think they have made a mistake that they acknowledge that. We all know that mistakes are being made during football matches – by us, by me, by referees,” Slot told reporters ahead of Sunday’s game at Fulham.
“It is good that they acknowledge the mistake but it was so clear. Let’s go on to Sunday,” he added.
Victory over Everton in an electric atmosphere at Anfield restored Liverpool’s 12-point lead over Arsenal with eight games left. While they have one hand on the Premier League trophy, Slot said there was still a long way to go on the home stretch.
“In theory so many things can happen. We felt yesterday how hard it is to win a Premier League game,” he said. “It tells you that with eight games to go, every game is a challenge – starting with Fulham, who are having a very good season as well.
“We are not working on theories about how many points (we need), we are taking the challenge of Fulham where we will need to be at our best again to get a result.”
Slot said defenders Trent Alexander-Arnold and Joe Gomez are weeks away from returning while goalkeeper Alisson, who was injured on international duty with Brazil, remains sidelined due to concussion protocols.
