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Premier League referees 'earning £2,500 for overseas matches' on top of Prem salaries
Premier League refereeing has come under criticism after Liverpool's disallowed goal against Tottenham.
Tottenham head coach Ange Postecoglou said he has never been a fan of VAR after their 2-1 win over Liverpool
Premier League officials are said to be earning approximately £2,500 for their overseas trips that have recently been criticised after Liverpool star Luis Diaz had his goal wrongly deemed offside in their 2-1 defeat away to Tottenham on Saturday. VAR and assistant VAR Darren England and Dan Cook have been stood down from duties this weekend.
One criticism levelled against the PGMOL is the trips abroad that Premier League officials have been taking between games. The pair involved in Liverpool’s error were officiating in the United Arab Emirates just 48 hours prior to kick-off in north London, raising doubts about whether fatigue could be playing a part in errors made this season.
England and Cook are not the only officials that have jetted off to ply their trade elsewhere, as Michael Oliver was flown to Saudi Arabia to take charge of Al Hilal’s clash with Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr in April, while Craig Pawson and Andy Madley officiated in Greece and Japan respectively in the past few months.
The Daily Mail claim that referees can command in the region of £2,500 for such one-off games. Liverpool are not the only club said to be displeased with officials taking such trips, as they have come under the microscope in recent days.
PGMOL, led by former referee Howard Webb, are currently investigating the incident that was described as a “significant human error” which led to Diaz’s goal being incorrectly disallowed. They are also looking into their policy of allowing referees to take on international assignments between Premier League matches.
Each trip has to be approved by the FA but few are rejected, as long as the official’s availability for Premier League fixtures is not disrupted. But with many calling for the audio to be released from the incident, more changes could be made as to whether referees can take charge of matches abroad.
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Former PGMOL chief Keith Hackett has insisted that it was “poor management” to allow England and Cook to officiate in the UAE on Thursday, before returning to England the following day and then working the VAR for Liverpool’s trip to Spurs on Saturday.
“I understand that they officiated on Thursday evening, which means on Friday they will have had a minimum seven hours in the air,” Hackett told The Telegraph. “This impacts on their recovery and a loss of sharpness in their performance.
"In my time in office if they were in Europe on Thursday then they would not officiate until late Sunday or Monday at the earliest. This is yet another example of poor management of these professional sports persons and actual changes must be made to stop these mounting errors.”