Liverpool manager Arne Slot was not surprised by the VAR overturning of the penalty awarded to his team in their Champions League quarter-final against Paris Saint-Germain, citing that his club has been on the receiving end of multiple unfavorable decisions throughout the season. The Reds were eliminated from the tournament after suffering a 2-0 defeat at Anfield, which resulted in a 4-0 aggregate loss.
Despite displaying a spirited performance that troubled the European champions, Liverpool's hopes were dashed when Ousmane Dembele scored twice in the latter stages of the game. One of the pivotal moments in the match came when Alexis Mac Allister appeared to have won a penalty, only for the referee to revoke the decision after a VAR review. Tim Sherwood, who was watching the game, believed it was a penalty, stating, 'It's soft, but in my opinion, it is a penalty.' Slot expressed his sentiments, saying, 'I'm not surprised, as so many decisions have gone against us this season. It's quite simple: if the referee doesn't give a penalty, the VAR would have never overturned it.
I've seen many soft penalties given, but people say VAR can't interfere because there is contact. That's what we clearly see.' Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate shared his thoughts on the incident, saying, 'For me, it was a clear penalty.
I was behind the referee. If we got the penalty and scored, it would have been completely different.' However, it's worth noting that PSG were unfortunate not to be awarded at least one spot kick in the first leg, with VAR overturning the referee's decision to penalize Konate for a foul on Warren Zaire-Emery and opting not to punish the defender for a push on Nuno Mendes. During the post-match press conference, Sky Sports News' Vinny O'Connor expressed surprise at the penalty decision being overturned, given that there was contact.
Slot responded, 'Me too, but not when it comes to us, because this has happened to us multiple times this season.' Slot drew comparisons to Manchester City, stating, 'I think it was Rodri or Bernardo Silva who said they have been very unlucky with referees this season. I heard them say this one month ago, something like that. If you can say that, then remember both games you played against us – how many decisions then went against us? So, what does this tell you about us?' Liverpool has struggled to build on their Premier League-winning season under Slot last year, despite signing notable players like Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz in the summer.
As a result, Slot has come under pressure to keep his job, and the team still faces the challenge of securing a top-five finish in the Premier League to play Champions League football next season. Slot addressed the club's current situation, saying, 'Much has been said that the club is in a transition.
The club has sold 8-10 players to make money to sign five or so very talented players. We have to sell to buy. We are losing some players on a free transfer – Mo Salah and Andy Robertson.
It is a big challenge in the summer, but the club has shown this model works. As I said many times, the future looks very good, especially if we can sign players after good players leave this summer.'