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Luis Diaz incident is like nothing I’ve seen before – but replaying games isn’t an option
It’s fair to say it’s been a testing couple of weeks for Liverpool in terms of the refereeing of their games! I’m not sure I can ever remember an incident like the one we saw at Tottenham with the Luis Diaz ‘goal’, and I think that was shown with the fallout which followed.
It was a quite bizarre, and really quite troubling, episode, and listening to the audio from the VAR room, it is easy to see why Liverpool (and other clubs, by the way) believe significant changes are needed in terms of the way VAR is used in the Premier League.
In a world of VAR, the Diaz incident simply should not be happening. Managers, players and even supporters can accept an assistant referee getting a marginal offside call wrong on the field, but the idea that two extra officials could look at the decision, use technology to prove it incorrect and then, through complacency and poor communication, allow that incorrect decision to be upheld, is just baffling, and worrying in the extreme for the PGMOL. It’s an extreme (and to my mind unprecedented) example, but it makes you wonder how many more cases such as this exist, where an incorrect decision has been allowed to stand because of confusion and unclear communication from the VAR. I’m sure fans of every club could think of an example or two involving their own side, right?
Liverpool were right to be aggrieved after the Tottenham game, and had reason to ask questions of referee Anthony Taylor and VAR Craig Pawson after the draw at Brighton too – how Pascal Gross was not sent off remains a mystery – but I’m not in the camp of believing that replaying games should be an option, even in the event of such clear and obvious mistakes. That box should not be opened.
Rather, the original game at Tottenham should have been stopped, the mistake explained to the managers and captains (and, via the big screen) supporters, and restarted with the correct score-line. If that is what happens in the future, then at least something will have come out of a messy, and completely avoidable situation.
Liverpool have three centre-back targets and it needs to be a priority for 2024
I think it’s clear that centre-back is an area that Liverpool need to look at in 2024. Joel Matip’s contract is expiring and Joe Gomez seems to now be viewed as more of a right-back than a centre-back by Jurgen Klopp. That leaves Virgil van Dijk, who is well into his 30s, the talented-but-fragile Ibrahima Konate and the youngster Jarell Quansah as Liverpool’s longer-term options.
Quansah has been a real bonus, and looks at 20 to have all the tools to become a decent Premier League centre-back. He’s inexperienced, yes, but his potential is clear.
Both Goncalo Inacio and Piero Hincapie have been looked at by Liverpool, as has Benfica’s Antonio Silva, but any move in January would depend, I think, on two factors. One is whether Liverpool’s current centre-backs are fit (at the moment, they are) and two is whether those players are available and affordable, mid-season. Bayer Leverkusen, Sporting CP and Benfica all have designs on challenging for league titles, remember, so obtaining key players from them in January won’t be easy. Next summer would be more likely, unless circumstances change.
Stefan Bajcetic loan rumours don’t make sense
Stefan Bajcetic’s situation for now is clear; he needs to get back to full fitness and then go from there. He’s suffered a calf issue after making his long-awaited return from an adductor problem, and is going to be sidelined until after the international break.
At 18 (he turns 19 later this month), Liverpool were prepared for such bumps in the road. Bajcetic was promoted swiftly to the first team last season and there was always the risk that the extra intensity, coupled with his own natural physical development, would cause injury and fitness issues. There is no great concern at Kirkby, it is seen as pretty standard for a young, up and coming player.
In terms of a loan, I’d be surprised. Bajcetic is a player who is very highly thought of, and one who has the natural skillset to flourish in this version of Liverpool. He is technically good, has a good defensive instinct and plays with confidence and conviction.
He was given a lot of responsibility in a struggling side last season, and there is a lot of excitement as to what he might be able to bring to a more cohesive outfit going forward. Allowing him to leave on loan in January would not make a great deal of sense in that regard.
Pedro Neto has admirers at Anfield – could he replace Mohamed Salah?
I’m not surprised to see Pedro Neto’s name being linked with top clubs, given the way he’s started the Premier League season. The Wolves man has always been a huge talent, one admired by just about every big side including Liverpool, but injuries have set him back significantly in recent years.
Now he’s back fit, we are seeing what he can do, and the pace and threat he brings, plus the room for development he has at 23, mark him out as someone who can definitely take the next step by moving to a Champions League club.
Whether that’s Liverpool – they still need to get back to the Champions League, by the way! – remains to be seen. I know that Neto has admirers at Anfield, and that his versatility and skillset would be well-suited to a Jurgen Klopp side. But then the same could be said, I believe, for a Mikel Arteta side or a Pep Guardiola side. I believe he is of that level, potentially.
The first aim for him, though, must be to stay fit and to turn this purple patch into something more sustainable. He still needs to improve his numbers, particularly in terms of goal-scoring, if he is to put himself in that top bracket of attackers. But he is making waves at Wolves right now, and if he continues to do so then we can expect him to move on to bigger and better things next season.
With reasons to think that the Mohamed Salah to Saudi Arabia stories might not be going away in 2024, Neto could definitely be one to watch.
Liverpool looked at Jadon Sancho when he was at Borussia Dortmund – here’s what Erik ten Hag has got wrong with the player
It is easy to look at Jadon Sancho and wonder what might have been, isn’t it? I know that Liverpool, for example, had a good long look at him when he was ripping it up at Borussia Dortmund, but opted to go down a different route when recalibrating their attack, choosing less heralded (and cheaper) players such as Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz, both of whom have turned out to be successes.
I, like many others I’m sure, expected Sancho to be a huge hit at Manchester United, and so it is a big surprise to see where he has ended up. It is hard to see a way back for him at Old Trafford, unless of course Erik ten Hag leaves.
I think the mistake Ten Hag has made, both in terms of his relationship with the player and from the club’s perspective, is in going public with his dissatisfaction. Once he did that, he a) risked what happened with Sancho responding to his criticism and making the story bigger and b) damaged United’s chances of selling the player. United are getting absolutely nothing out of Sancho at the moment, and given the money they invested in him and the talent he has, that is a serious problem, even before we think about the PR side of things. Were they to try and offload him in January, they’d be getting nowhere near the money they paid.
Ten Hag, of course, might argue that his public criticism was an attempt to get the player’s attention and focus, a last resort, if you like, but given Sancho’s reaction it feels like that was a misguided move. The player clearly doesn’t agree with his assessment, or his approach, and there are no winners emerging from this situation. Sancho is sidelined, Ten Hag is without a potentially key player and United are watching the value of an asset diminish with each passing week.
Ten Hag is not the only manager to fight such battles, of course. I think we were all surprised when Pep Guardiola took on Joao Cancelo last season, for example, while Mikel Arteta got rid of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang when he was Arsenal’s club captain and one of the figureheads of the side. Both of those decisions turned out to be justified from the manager’s point of view, you’d say!
In terms of Jurgen Klopp, there have not been too many examples of him laying down the law with players, or questioning their professionalism in public. The one example that stands out is Mamadou Sakho, whose Reds career was effectively ended after a series of disciplinary and behavioural breaches during Klopp’s first pre-season in 2016. That is the only time, to my mind, I can remember Klopp ever admonishing a first-team player publicly during his time at Anfield – and again, the manager turned out to be the winner in that battle!