Unai Emery made clear that he would not ask for a replay were he in Jurgen Klopp’s shoes and his side had been affected by VAR’s total mismanagement of a game.
The former Sevilla head coach admitted he had some sympathy for the German’s plight following a contentious 2-1 Liverpool defeat to Tottenham at the weekend.
“Before when we didn’t have VAR, there were a lot of mistakes – more than now,” the Spaniard was quoted as saying by Birmingham Live.
“Now I can accept some mistakes in VAR. They are only a few… small mistakes.
“Of course for Liverpool it was a big mistake in the last match against Tottenham but we have to accept because before, without VAR, there were more and more and more.”
The Aston Villa boss added, when pushed for an answer on whether he’d want a game replayed due to a VAR error: “No. No. You have to accept it like before, when we were without VAR.”
It’s a position that will most certainly attract a big thumbs-up from media guru Gary Neville, who repeatedly criticised the Reds boss’ pre-Union St. Gilloise comments.
Because of Liverpools statement escalating it , mentioning integrity and exploring options. Now we’ve seen they want a replay! Thats madness. https://t.co/AnIzksmKx5
— Gary Neville (@GNev2) October 4, 2023
???!! Can’t believe how Liverpool have grabbed defeat from victory in their handling of this ! They were wronged by a shocking mistake.End of! https://t.co/O47oT7gvlw
— Gary Neville (@GNev2) October 4, 2023
Both, one could argue from a critical lens, have missed the point. Whilst the 56-year-old does mention the possibility of a replay being a viable solution – as a football fan, not a manager – the point of challenging the PGMOL is to raise standards, not get a one-off positive result in Liverpool’s favour.
There is an argument to be had that a replay would, of course, raise a worrying precedent.
It’s a debate for the clubs and the officiating body to hold together, though one might reasonably expect that Klopp’s men won’t lie down easy over this matter.