PGMOL yet to confirm Darren England’s Liverpool duties amid controversy

Sky Sports reports that PGMOL has not made any decision regarding referee Darren England officiating Liverpool matches for the rest of the current campaign.

It follows multiple reports claiming the controversial referee has been removed from Liverpool duty for the rest of the season after his howler in the Reds’ defeat at Tottenham Hotspur.

The controversy stems from the VAR decision to incorrectly disallow a Luis Diaz goal in the first half of Liverpool’s 2-1 defeat at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

PGMOL subsequently issued an apology to the Reds after admitting a ‘significant human error’ on the part of VAR, but that wasn’t enough to pacify the Merseysiders, who fell to their first defeat of the season.

Liverpool demanded audio recordings of the conversation between on-field referee Simon Hooper and England, who was on VAR duty during the headline fixture.

The footage revealed that the VAR confirmed the goal should have been given, but after completing their check, play had already resumed. 

The officials subsequently failed to call their decision to the attention of the on-field referee, Hooper, amid concerns that the VAR protocol within the Laws of the Game would not permit interference.

This error raised significant questions about the VAR process, prompting Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp to call for a replay of the match.

PGMOL removed England and assistant VAR Dan Cook from officiating duties for the rest of last weekend, before confirming that the pair have also been benched for their upcoming assignments.

Adrian Holmes, the assistant referee who flagged Diaz offside, has also been benched. England was sidelined by the English Football League ahead of the midweek fixtures.

Liverpool will be hoping to get their season back on track when they host Union Saint-Gilloise in the Europa League on Thursday before travelling to Brighton & Hove Albion this weekend.