‘3 people watch it, they should find the right decision’ – Klopp says VAR calls must improve

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp sympathised with Dean Smith after a contentious video assistant referee call went against Aston Villa on Thursday and claimed the system “should really find the right decision”.

Villa fell behind against Manchester United from a penalty which was awarded after Bruno Fernandes stepped into Ezri Konsa and went down inside the area when trying to turn on the ball.

Referee Jon Moss pointed to the spot and the decision was controversially backed up by VAR official Graham Scott, even though the United man appeared to be the one who fouled Konsa.

That was not the only debatable VAR decision of the day, with Tottenham denied a spot-kick despite Joshua King appearing to push Harry Kane in the box, while Southampton were given a penalty against Everton when James Ward-Prowse looked to be already falling into Andre Gomes before any contact was made.

On each of the three occasions, the VAR official went with the on-field call and Klopp questioned why it was so complicated for such decisions to be overturned when they seemed “obvious” to him.

BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - Saturday, November 2, 2019: Liverpool's manager Jürgen Klopp (L) and the fourth official during the FA Premier League match between Aston Villa FC and Liverpool FC at Villa Park. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

Speaking at his pre-match press conference ahead of the Premier League champions’ clash with Burnley, Klopp said: “I think it was a week ago, Jose (Mourinho) in his after-match interview said the decision is made by the guy in the studio. Now we have a situation where on one matchday three decisions should have been different.

“I can 100 per cent understand that Dean Smith is really struggling to accept what happened last night.

“I don’t know how it can happen, to be honest. It’s not about who makes the decision, whether it’s two people or three people, in the end it’s just about getting the right decision.

“What I don’t understand is that overruling is so complicated, that it must be a ‘clear and obvious’ misjudgement. I thought they were all obvious, but you’d have to ask the refs why they still stuck to the decision.

“It’s obviously difficult, but last night I didn’t think it was too difficult! It is obviously not right and not good.

“I really would like to think that in the end three people watch it, they should really find the right decision in the end.”