VARs Darren England and Daniel Cook will return to Premier League duty this weekend following their error in last month’s fixture between Tottenham and Liverpool.
England and Cook were the VAR and VAR assistant respectively when Liverpool forward Luis Diaz’s goal was incorrectly ruled out for offside in Tottenham’s 2-1 home win.
Both officials were stood down the following week, but England will be back as the fourth official for Brentford’s home game against Burnley on Saturday and Cook will return as assistant referee for Sheffield United’s home match against Manchester United.
Miscommunication between VAR England and referee Simon Hooper led to Diaz’s goal being wrongly ruled out on September 30, with the incident later described by referees’ chief Howard Webb as “a clear error”.
Hooper is the designated VAR for Newcastle’s home game against Crystal Palace on Saturday.
New VAR guidelines were introduced in the wake of the Diaz disallowed goal controversy, while audio of the incident was later released.
England mistakenly thought the on-field officials had ruled Diaz to be onside, which meant that when he told them ‘check complete’ they believed he had upheld their on-field decision and restarted play with a free-kick.
Once play had restarted, there was nothing the VARs could do to revisit the decision under existing protocols.
Referees’ body Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) said it would develop a new VAR communication protocol in an effort to avoid similar mistakes being made in future.
PGMOL said the protocol would “enhance the clarity of communication between the referee and the VAR team in relation to on-field decisions”.
VARs will now also confirm the outcome of the checking process with the assistant VAR before confirming the final decision to the on-field officials.
One of the talking points from the latest round of fixtures was referee Michael Oliver’s decision not to send off Manchester City’s Mateo Kovacic for a challenge on Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard.
The City midfielder was shown a yellow card before avoiding another shortly afterwards and Webb later admitted Kovacic was “fortunate” to stay on the pitch.
Oliver will referee Sheffield United’s home game against Manchester United on Saturday.
Ten Hag hails 'ketchup bottle' Rashford after ending goal drought
Erik ten Hag saluted "ketchup bottle" Marcus Rashford after the Manchester United forward ended his goal drought in their victory at Southampton.
Rashford doubled United's lead at St Mary's when he curled a 20-yard effort past Aaron Ramsdale, while Matthijs de Ligt and Alejandro Garnacho were also on target for the visitors.
It was the 26-year-old's 132nd goal for the club, but first since he found the net in the Red Devils' FA Cup victory over Liverpool at Old Trafford.
Rashford was the subject of criticism for his performance in United's 3-0 defeat against the Reds prior to the international break.
However, Ten Hag felt that "negativity" was unjustified and is backing his forward to build momentum, referencing an analogy once utilised by Cristiano Ronaldo.
"It's very important we don't pay attention to what the outside world is saying, but there was too much negativity about him," the Dutchman said of Rashford.
"He created two great chances in that game [the defeat to Liverpool]. In other games this season, he has played very well.
"He deserved that goal [against Southampton], but he had to work for it. That is what he is doing, and then you get a reward.
"Once, a striker was talking about a ketchup bottle; once it's going, it’s coming more."
"He has already scored so many goals for Manchester United. At his age, the number of goals is amazing, and I'm sure he will score many more goals."
Tivoli Gardens young prospect Delano Daley among three killed in fiery crash
Tivoli Gardens Football Club has been plunged into mourning as one of their young talents, Delano Daley, died in a car accident on Saturday morning.
The tragic loss of Daley, who was signed from Waterhouse Football Club, comes on the eve of the 2024/25 Wray and Nephew-sponsored Jamaica Premier League (JPL) season, which is scheduled to kick off on Sunday.
Daley’s sister and another relative also perished the incident, which reportedly occurred at the intersection of Eastwood Park Road and Burlington Avenue in the vicinity of the Half-Way Tree Primary School.
Though the identities of the individuals were not initially ascertained, the West Kingston club revealed that Daley and the others were the occupants of the vehicle, which caught fire.
“Our new addition, Delano Daley, was taken from us too soon in a car accident this morning. Our Tivoli Gardens family is heartbroken and mourns the loss of this bright and promising star. His sister and cousin also passed in the tragic accident. Our thoughts and prayers are with the entire family, friends, and teammates during this difficult time. May Delano’s memory live on in our hearts,” the club said in a social media post.
'I prefer to win that way', says Guardiola after battling Brentford triumph
Pep Guardiola said he preferred Manchester City's win over Brentford as opposed to a more comfortable scoreline, confirming he is a big fan of Bees head coach Thomas Frank.
Erling Haaland's first-half brace ensured Guardiola's side maintained their perfect start to the season, but they had to come from behind to win 2-1 at the Etihad.
Yoane Wissa's goal after 22 seconds handed Brentford a shock lead, with his strike the fastest ever scored in the Premier League against the reigning champions.
It was also the first time that City had ever conceded in the opening minute at home in the competition.
Frank's side were also the last to beat Guardiola's men on home soil in any competition, winning 2-1 in November 2022, with the Citizens now unbeaten in 46 at the Etihad in all competitions since (W39 D7).
"I am a big fan of Thomas Frank. I don't remember in eight or nine years having a team playing the way they played," Guardiola said.
"We were lucky with the deflection because they deserved 1-0.
"We struggled a lot to read when to shoot and press. We were lucky to find the goals, but in the second half we were better and probably deserved to score more goals.
"We needed that to feel how difficult everything is, how difficult the Premier League is every game.
"People say City are so strong, but the Premier League is so difficult. Today was the real proof.
"I am a big fan of Brentford. They play long balls, but they have the ability to play as well.
"I give a lot of credit to my players, from where we come from in the past, but to still be able to suffer. I prefer to win that way rather than four or five nil. We need that."
City have now won back-to-back home games in the Premier League after conceding the opening goal for the first time since November 2019, while they are now unbeaten in their last eight matches (home and away) when conceding first in the competition (W7 D1).
Brentford, meanwhile, have lost five of their seven meetings with City in the top flight - the joint-most defeats they have suffered against an opponent in the competition (alongside Liverpool & Newcastle).
The Bees have now lost more Premier League away games (14) than any other side currently in the competition since the start of last season but provided the Citizens with a stern test of their title credentials.
While only managing an expected goals (xG) tally of 0.92 from their eight shots, Frank leaves the Etihad disappointed in the result, but proud of his side's performance.
"Standing here I am a combination of extremely disappointed we didn't get something out of this game but on the other hand very proud," Frank said.
"The first 25 minutes was world class, we were better than Manchester City. Second half they were more on top and made it difficult.
"A point would have been fair and not often teams can come here and say that.
"You could say if we need to win here we needed to take more of the chances we had in the first half.
"I respect Pep Guardiola very much and a lot of the reasons I do is because he made tactical changes at half-time, and then he is not too proud to put the ball down in the corner because they need to win. We must have done something right today.
"This is a fantastic group to work with and we need to keep doing this."
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