Vincent Kompany showed class with his verdict on the two goals that Liverpool contentiously had disallowed in their 2-0 win over his Burnley side on Boxing Day.
Darwin Nunez and Diogo Jota ended up on the scoresheet for the Reds, although Cody Gakpo and Harvey Elliott both had their efforts controversially chalked off.
Speaking to Amazon Prime after the match, the Clarets boss empathised with the frustrations of his opposite number Jurgen Klopp and said that the implementation of VAR in the Premier League warrants a wider discussion.
Kompany declared (via Liverpool World): “It’s a bigger-picture discussion for me. In the overall package, we’ve had these moments against us. I understand Jurgen’s opinion and position. But from my perspective, the amount of times we have sat here and said it’s cost us points… they got the win.”
Unlike plenty of other managers who are unfailingly tribal towards their own club, the Burnley boss showed admirable honesty and empathy with his verdict on the two goals Liverpool had disallowed at Turf Moor, acknowledging that his team have also suffered at the hands of officials this season.
Those two clubs ae far from alone in having legitimate grievances about refereeing standards at Premier League level – look at how many times Wolves have had decisions go against them ranging from harsh to downright inexplicable.
Kompany’s mention of a ‘bigger-picture discussion’ must serve as a wake-up call for the PGMOL to get their house in order and quickly instill a significant improvement in the performance of their members.
We’re only halfway through the season and already there have been enough VAR-related controversies to provide material for a novel-length book to be published.
Managers wouldn’t stand for their own players performing well below the expected standard, so by the same token, the PGMOL must recognise that referees in the Premier League are simply getting things wrong far too often, and the status quo can’t be maintained.
