Webb backs officials over disallowed Liverpool goal

"Van Dijk thought he had equalised for Liverpool in the 38th minute, but referee Chris Kavanagh and his assistant Stuart Burt decided Andrew Robertson had committed an offside offence by ducking under the flight of the ball, which had impacted goalkeeper Gianluiga Donnarumma. The Video Assistant Referee, Michael Oliver, checked the incident and supported the on-field call, with Manchester City going on to win the game 3-0. On Monday, Liverpool contacted Professional Game Match Officials (PGMO) - the body that oversees refereeing in English professional football - to raise their concerns, as they believe the relevant criteria for the offence were not met and the goal should have been allowed."

"Interfering with an opponent where the offside position player doesn't play the ball and the officials have to make a judgment whether the actions of that player impact an opponent, are some of the most subjective decisions that we have to make."

"Therefore, it's no surprise that some people believe this goal should have stood, so I think it's important that we look at the facts of what actually happened in this situation. We know the corner comes in and the ball reaches Van Dijk. As the ball's coming across the penalty area, the Manchester City players move out, they leave Robertson in that offside position in the heart of the six-yard box. When Van Dijk heads the ball forward, that's the moment when we have to make an offside judgment about Robertson and about what he's doing there."

Manchester City won 3-0 after Virgil van Dijk's 38th-minute header for Liverpool was disallowed for offside. Match officials ruled that Andrew Robertson, positioned in the six-yard box, ducked under the flight of the ball and thereby interfered with play despite not touching the ball. The Video Assistant Referee reviewed the incident and upheld the on-field decision. Liverpool raised concerns with the Professional Game Match Officials, arguing that the criteria for an offside offence were not met. Howard Webb defended the decision, calling such interference judgments among the most subjective refereeing calls.

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