“The Oscar goes to…” – Man City Pep Guardiola’s view of Luis Diaz ‘offside’
Pep Guardiola offered his condolences to Liverpool after Luis Diaz was wrongly called for offside in Saturday’s 2-1 defeat to Tottenham.
The Man City boss is the latest Premier League manager to be asked for his thoughts on the controversial VAR error which denied the Colombian a legitimate goal.
Diaz looked set to open the scoring in the first half, although the Reds were reduced to 10 men after Curtis Jones was sent off.
PGMOL later admitted that “significant human error” had led officials to concede the goal.
Ahead of his side’s trip to RB Leipzig in the Champions League, Guardiola stressed the need for change, insisting that footballers must play a “leading role” in matches, not referees. “They have to find a system where the main roles are the players and the game itself,” Guardiola told the media, as quoted by the Manchester Evening News.
“In every country, not just here. Referees and VAR are the main roles. And Oscar goes. They have to take a step back, be more humble and let the players do what they need to do and they will be better.
Man City competed for trophies with the Reds during Guardiola’s tenure in England, making his support better in the ongoing struggle. PGMOL released the VAR hearing of the event following an official request from Liverpool. This is a sign that pressure on the authorities can pay off.
Guardiola admitted he is “not a professional” and therefore has no decision-making authority, but admitted his Premier League rivals have suffered a “big consequence” due to a lack of referees.
“I can totally understand how upset Liverpool must be in this case,” he continued.
“I’m not a [referee] professional. I trust people and we have to implement that as best as possible. I’m not involved and I don’t care.
– Everyone knows they made a mistake and Liverpool suffered a big consequence. This is very important in this type of game. But don’t worry, the consequences are determined by the players and managers.
Audio footage of the proceedings revealed VAR Darren England realized his mistake when he confirmed a review had been made, and VAR Hub Ops director Oli Kohout was also heard advising the game to be postponed.
This will not disappoint anyone involved with the football club, but it could be a step forward in holding officials accountable for their mistakes in the future.
