Due to VAR, Liverpool’s second goal against Burnley was disallowed. From an offside position, Simon Hooper believed Mohamed Salah was obstructing James Trafford’s view. After Harvey Elliott put the ball in the goal, his joy was short-lived.

The ECHO claims that Hooper’s intervention was triggered by Salah’s positioning in relation to Trafford’s eyeline. That came after Liverpool had already had one goal disallowed due to a foul call by on-field referee Paul Tierney, following which Cody Gakpo scored a powerful finish.

Two decisions went against Jürgen Klopp’s team at Turf Moor, so they had to work hard for a crucial victory. In the end, Liverpool would need to wait until stoppage time to complete the match.

However, Elliott believed he had succeeded when he scored in front of the departing supporters. Following a pass from Ryan Gravenberch, he raced forward and beat the Burnley goalie. After examining the pitch-side monitor, referee Tierney initially gave the goal the go-ahead, but later determined that Salah was offside and obstructing Trafford’s view. Thus, the objective was rejected.

Elliott’s shot and the quick build-up made it look nearly impossible for his England Under-21s teammate to save it. Additionally, replays revealed that Salah was pushed into his offside position by Burnley defender Jordan Beyer. This led Klopp to lament referees who have ‘never played football’ and wonder how this scenario could not qualify as a goal (via This is Anfield).

The on-field referee chalked off the first goal that was disallowed, and Klopp was not specifically questioned about it. It is understood that Tierney was only a few feet away when the VAR decided not to alter the call. Hooper believed there was ‘not enough evidence’ to identify a glaringly obvious mistake.

Due to these calls, Liverpool had to clumsily hang onto their narrow lead while Vincent Kompany’s team gained momentum. But Diogo Jota, who hadn’t appeared on the pitch since November 25, came off the bench to seal the victory from a close distance. The Reds now lead the Premier League, one point clear of Arsenal, who take on West Ham on Thursday.