You’re never going to get every call in your favour, and most can accept that reality in football.
Of course, one can’t likewise begrudge Liverpool fans for feeling a little aggrieved at the officiating inadequacy that allowed Everton to walk away with a share of the points at Goodison on Wednesday.
James Tarkowski was allowed to be the hero of the hour with a stoppage-time volley that reduced the Reds’ lead at the top of the table to seven points over second-placed Arsenal.
Arne Slot’s men have since seen that lead cut down to four points following Mikel Merino’s late salvo for Arsenal at the weekend.
Liverpool are set to take on Wolves at 2pm on Sunday at Anfield, with a chance to restore the gap.
Mark Goldbridge feels that Ibrahima Konate was let down
Ibrahima Konate would have every right to walk away feeling the most aggrieved after a blatant foul on his person went unpunished by on-pitch official Michael Oliver and VAR.
Mark Goldbridge couldn’t quite wrap his head around the officiating team failing to penalise a clear shove on the French international whilst in mid-air challenging for a header.
A header, which, we would hasten to add, would have more than likely cleared the danger for Liverpool ahead of Tarkowski’s superb equalising goal.
“I can’t be a hypocrite on this. I think Konate gets shoved in the back and I think it’s a foul,” the United Stand presenter spoke on the That’s Football!’s YouTube channel.
“People can say it’s soft but I genuinely… if I start going down this route, I’m not being true to myself. He clearly gives him a shove in the back when he’s in the air and that stops him heading the ball.
“I don’t understand why VAR didn’t do anything about it.”
It feels like a decision heavily influenced by Oliver and Co.’s desire to not upset the crowd or appear vaguely favourable to the visitors.
Don’t get us wrong – Liverpool were far from being dominant over the course of the tie in question, but that by no means vindicates the officiating team’s abhorrent failures during the Merseyside derby.
Goldbridge is spot on here; it doesn’t make any sense why the VAR team didn’t intervene.
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