Paul Tierney: The VAR on duty for Liverpool vs Fulham

Referee appointments used to pass by without much incident. But the modern fan’s sense of persecution and paranoia now makes the PGMOL’s release of officials almost as keenly anticipated as each club’s team sheet.

Liverpool and Fulham fans scanning the list of appointments ahead of their Sunday kick off at 14:00 (GMT) will have spotted Stuart Attwell is down as the on-pitch referee. However, the eye is quickly drawn to the name lurking beneath the video assistant referee (VAR) section. Paul Tierney will be the official watching on from Stockley Park.

Impressively, Tierney has incited the wrath of both fanbases and staff members of Liverpool and Fulham in recent years. Here’s everything you need to know about the VAR this weekend.

Alexis Mac Allister’s first home appearance for Liverpool ended inside an hour. Thomas Bramall deemed the Argentine’s tackle on Bournemouth’s Ryan Christie to be worthy of a straight red card. Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp unsurprisingly called the decision “harsh” and “a mistake” but even the beneficiary Andoni Iraola admitted: “In real life, it did not look like a red card.”

Tierney did not overrule Bramall on that occasion or when Dominik Szoboszlai won a soft penalty in the first half of a 3-1 win for the Reds.

Mikel Arteta was mightily glad that Tierney did intervene during September’s north London derby, flagging Cristian Romero’s second-half handball to award the penalty which led to Arsenal’s second goal of the afternoon.

Tierney can labour over decisions – he took a particularly long time to decide that Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s goal for Everton in defeat to Luton Town was onside – but he hasn’t made any major gaffes this campaign.

“We have our history with Tierney,” Klopp raged after a particularly hectic 4-3 victory for Liverpool over Tottenham Hotspur in April. “I really don’t know what he has against us.”

The ongoing feud between Liverpool’s manager and the Wigan-born official stretches back to December 2017 when Tierney disallowed Dominic Solanke’s bundled finish in a goalless draw with West Bromwich Albion. That incident came before VAR was introduced and most of Klopp’s gripes with Tierney have revolved around his on-pitch refereeing.

At the end of a spiky 2-2 draw against Spurs in December 2021, Klopp sidled up to Tierney and was caught on a microphone saying: “I have no problems with any referees, it’s only you.” After that game, Tierney was removed from VAR duty for Liverpool’s match against Chelsea the following month.

When Tierney has been allowed to distantly oversee a Liverpool game, the Reds have fared very favourably; winning eight and drawing two of the ten such matches.

Tierney has seen Liverpool win six penalties in ten games and only concede one. That solitary spot kick came in a 1-1 draw with Manchester City in November 2020. Kevin De Bruyne stepped up from 12 yards after Joe Gomez had been deemed to handle the ball in the box following a typically lengthy review from Tierney. Yet, the Belgian missed. Klopp was more concerned with Liverpool’s condensed fixture list than the penalty that day.

Tierney is yet to be in front of a monitor watching a Fulham game in Stockley Park. The Cottagers have had the pleasure of getting whistled on the pitch by Tierney on 17 occasions across various competitions – but Fulham are yet to win a Premier League game with Tierney as the referee (D3 L6).

Marco Silva branded Tierney’s decision to send Calvin Bassey off in Fulham’s 2-2 August draw with Arsenal a “joke”. The former Ajax centre-back was booked for time-wasting before receiving a second yellow card after a cynical block on Eddie Nketiah. Silva argued that Arsenal’s reputation impacted Tierney’s decision at the Emirates Stadium.

“It is always going to be not the big clubs who suffer more,” the Portuguese coach sighed.

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