The Premier League organizers respond to the controversial moment in the Liverpool match

After widespread controversy surrounding Florian Wirtz’s equalizer, the Premier League organizers have formally spoken out, providing legal and VAR grounds to affirm the goal’s validity.

Fulham and Liverpool delivered an exciting and engaging match right up to the final moments. The two teams ended level at 2-2 after 90 minutes, including two goals scored during stoppage time, capped by a spectacular long-range strike from Harrison Reed in the 90+7th minute.

However, the post-match discussion focused not on that stunning long-range goal but on Wirtz’s equalizer in the 57th minute. The German midfielder appeared to be offside when receiving the ball from Conor Bradley inside the penalty area before scoring past Bernd Leno. Wirtz himself did not celebrate and admitted after the match that he thought he was offside: “I was sure I was offside, so I didn’t even celebrate.”

Nevertheless, VAR had a different view. Liverpool’s equalizer was upheld, and the Premier League Match Centre’s social media account explained: “VAR reviewed the referee’s decision to disallow the goal and determined that Wirtz was in a legal position, thus recommending the goal be awarded.”

This is due to an important rule change in the Premier League. Since the 2020/21 season, the league allows a 5 cm “margin of error” for attacking players, meaning the offside lines are drawn thicker. This rule aims to slightly favor attackers but has sparked ongoing debate, especially when broadcasters like Sky Sports draw their own lines and reach different conclusions.

Had this occurred in the Champions League, Wirtz would almost certainly have been ruled offside. UEFA applies offside rules measured down to the millimeter, making the Premier League’s decision even more contentious.

Analyzing the situation on Sky Sports, Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher sided with Fulham: “I think he was offside. He looked clearly ahead. I know camera angles can be misleading, but when there’s a penalty spot as a reference and the goal still stands, it’s hard to believe.”

Earlier, Wilson’s opening goal also came from an extremely close offside situation. VAR technology showed Virgil van Dijk was positioned behind, which meant the Welsh player was onside before finishing past Alisson.

Back in November, Manchester City were very upset when Bruno Guimaraes was deemed onside in the buildup to Harvey Barnes’ goal. Aston Villa also protested strongly when Gabriel Gudmundsson appeared offside before Lukas Nmecha scored for Leeds on November 23rd.

The fact that the offside rule is no longer an absolute “black and white” matter, and that VAR images can be interpreted differently, is clearly not ideal for the Premier League. But this is the current reality, and debates around VAR are sure to continue.