Failed EPL VAR duo returns, but rightly not to replay booth

Premier League officials Darren England and Daniel Cook are set to return to action on Saturday. The duo was previously suspended following a debacle during a Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur match on September 30th. However, the reinstated pair will not be in the replay booth at the weekend.

Liverpool’s Luis Diaz scored a goal to give his club the lead against Spurs in the aforementioned matchup. However, VAR England and assistant Cook incorrectly ruled out the goal. The duo believed that the initial on-field decision was a goal and allowed the match to resume thinking that the score stood. Nevertheless, the original on-field call was offside. Referees could not reverse the miscommunication mistake after play resumed.

England, Cook to work pitchside for weekend’s Premier League games

While the duo returns to their jobs, they will not be VAR officials just yet. England is the fourth official during Burnley’s trip to Brentford on Saturday. Cook, on the other hand, is serving as an assistant referee to Michael Oliver as Sheffield United hosts Manchester United on the same day.

There is no real surprise that the pair will resume their duties after a short break. PGMOL, the organization responsible for refereeing in England, as well as the Premier League regularly issues minor penalties to referees that commit mistakes.

Match referee Simon Hooper, VAR Michael Salisbury and assistant VAR Richard West earned short bans following another fiasco earlier this season. The trio failed to award Wolves a late penalty against Manchester United in August. Nevertheless, they were all back working Premier League matches soon after.

PGMOL reprimanded Salisbury after a similar incident involving Brighton last season as well. The official will next be on VAR duty for Brighton’s matchup with Manchester City at the weekend.

PGMOL, EPL needs to sort out refereeing crisis

Reinstating England and Cook this weekend was bound to happen. However, the Premier League made the right call not to put either of them on VAR duties just yet. Assigning the duo to video replay at this point would show clubs and fans that the league is not taking these major blunders seriously enough.

Nevertheless, there should be harsher penalties for repeat refereeing offenders in the Premier League. Mistakes are going to happen with officials, but the league prides itself as the top soccer division in the world.

The Premier League has many of the top players in the sport. The biggest players tend to aspire to join a top English team at some point in their careers. However, the continuous blunders in Premier League matches are a significant black eye for the league.

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