Exclusive: Liverpool used ‘unfair tactic’ in VAR incident vs Nottingham Forest

Exclusive: Liverpool used ‘unfair tactic’ in VAR incident vs Nottingham Forest

Diogo Jota was never going to have his equaliser for Liverpool in their Premier League clash with Nottingham Forest ruled out by VAR, Keith Hackett has said.

The former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA official suggested goalkeeping coaches must find a way to deal with pressure from attacking players, after Matz Sels was blocked by Cody Gakpo in the lead-up to that goal.

Arne Slot’s had found themselves 1-0 down at half-time in that match at the City Ground on Tuesday (14 January), after Chris Wood opened the scoring early in the game to continue his fine form this season.

Liverpool though would pull themselves level midway through the second half, and Hackett has now dismissed any suggestions the goal would have been disallowed by VAR.

Keith Hackett issues ‘dark arts’ verdict on Liverpool equaliser at Nottingham Forest

With 66 minutes on the clock, Arne Slot made a double substitution that saw introduced Diogo Jota and Kostas Tsimakas to the game.

That immediately paid off for Liverpool, as the latter’s corner was then headed in by the Portugal international as the match resumed.