Video assistant referee Michael Salisbury has been removed from Sunday's Liverpool versus Arsenal match after the referees' body PGMOL admitted making an error. The decision comes following a controversial VAR intervention during Chelsea's match against Fulham.
PGMOL acknowledged that disallowing Josh King's goal for Fulham was a mistake. The VAR intervention ruled out the goal after identifying a foul by Rodrigo Muniz on Trevoh Chalobah in the build-up, but officials have now conceded this was incorrect.
High-profile match impact
John Brooks will replace Salisbury as the VAR official for the Premier League clash between Liverpool and Arsenal at Anfield. The high-profile fixture represents one of the most significant matches of the weekend.
The immediate removal of an official following a VAR error demonstrates unusually swift accountability from PGMOL. Such rapid consequences for officiating mistakes are relatively rare in Premier League football.
Personal acknowledgement
According to Metro, Howard Webb personally contacted Fulham to acknowledge the VAR error directly. The disallowed goal would have been 18-year-old Josh King's first goal for Fulham, adding personal significance to the controversial decision.
Marco Silva expressed frustration about multiple decisions going against Fulham early in the season, as reported by Metro. The Fulham manager's concerns highlight growing tensions around VAR consistency in the Premier League.
Sources used: "BBC", "Metro" Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
