Controversy over goal denied by VAR leads to Man City draw with Liverpool

Erling Haaland opened the scoring for Man City in the 27th minute of the first half, and coach Pep Guardiola's army thought they had doubled the gap in the 67th minute when midfielder Ruben Dias tapped the ball past goalkeeper Alisson Becker.

From Alvarez's corner kick on the left wing, goalkeeper Alisson Becker failed to catch the ball and center-back Ruben Dias quickly tapped the ball into the visitors' net.

However, referee Chris Kavanagh disallowed Ruben Dias' goal, claiming that Manuel Akanji had previously fouled goalkeeper Alisson Becker in the 5.5m area.

The video assistant referee (VAR) technology also stepped in to review the situation and agreed with referee Kavanagh's decision.

Ruben Dias scored against Liverpool in the 68th minute of the match (Photo: Sky Sport).

VAR technology determined that there was a situation where Akanji pushed Alisson Becker (Photo: Sky Sport).

However, Man City fans believe that this was a legitimate challenge by Akanji and Alisson Becker missed the ball (Photo: Sky Sport).

Even more bitterly, after Dias' goal was disallowed, Man City conceded another goal in the 80th minute of the match when Trent Alexander-Arnold had a decisive shot in the penalty area that defeated goalkeeper Ederson.

The English full-back's goal helped Liverpool earn a point against Man City in round 13 of the Premier League.

Many Man City fans expressed anger at VAR's decision to deny their team's goal and force The Citizens to share points with Liverpool's rivals.

"I don't think it was even a foul. Is football a non-contact sport now? The referees and VAR prove that every game without exception is completely bad," said a fan about the ball dispute between Manuel Akanji and goalkeeper Alisson Becker.

While another added: "That was a real shock from VAR. Alisson screaming again. What a joke."

A third wrote: "That was a ridiculous decision. It was clearly not a foul. Referees in England and VAR are a joke."

Meanwhile, many fans have compared Manuel Akanji's tackle with Joelinton's tackle on Gabriel Magalahaes in Newcastle's win over Arsenal in the previous round.

One fan wrote: "How did VAR see Akanji's push on Alisson Becker but not Joelinton's push on Gabriel Magalahaes?"

"For me, Alisson and Liverpool are extremely lucky. If the referee doesn't think it's a foul, VAR won't say it's a foul either," former Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher also commented on Man City's disallowed goal on Sky Sport .

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/tranh-cai-ban-thang-bi-cong-nghe-var-tu-choi-khien-man-city-hoa-liverpool-20231125234916529.htm