Fabrizio Romano has made a rare comment on non-transfer-related football news, slamming the “unacceptable” standard of refereeing and use of VAR that we’re seeing in the Premier League in 2023.
Most fans would probably agree that the introduction of VAR has not gone too well since it was implemented in the Premier League, and yesterday’s bizarre decision to disallow Luis Diaz’s goal for Liverpool against Tottenham is surely its most high-profile blunder yet.
The Colombia international was clearly onside when the ball was played, and Romano has admitted he was shocked by the decision as he responded to it in his exclusive Daily Briefing column this morning.
Romano acknowledged that referees have a difficult job and that this is not normally the kind of thing he writes about, but he described this as an “unbelievable” decision and slammed the general state of VAR at this level, with things no better than when it was first introduced in 2019.
He said: “I tend to prefer not to comment on matters like this, because it’s not really my area and it’s a difficult job, but I have to admit I was pretty shocked by the disallowed Luis Diaz goal for Liverpool against Tottenham yesterday.
“I’m a transfer journalist, and so it’s not my place to judge referees, but in any case, the offside situation is unbelievable, and in my opinion it’s unacceptable to see these kinds of situations in 2023.
“Liverpool will surely feel very hard done by, and it means their unbeaten start to the season is now over. Manchester City also suffered their first league defeat with a surprise 2-1 loss away to Wolves, so Arsenal and Spurs are now the only two unbeaten sides left in the Premier League.”