Premier League Publishes Complete VAR Audio for Virgil van Dijk’s Voided Goal

The Premier League has released the complete VAR audio related to Virgil van Dijk’s disallowed goal against Manchester City, following a complaint from Liverpool about the decision.

Earlier this week, Liverpool contacted PGMOL—the organization in charge of refereeing professional English football—to express concerns over Van Dijk’s first-half header, which was ruled out after Andy Robertson was deemed to have interfered with play. The club maintains the goal should have stood, arguing that Robertson did not obstruct Gianluigi Donnarumma, who had a clear line of sight, as Robertson ducked to avoid contact with the ball. Liverpool also claim that standard VAR checks were not properly followed.

On Tuesday, footage of the disallowed goal was featured on Match Officials Mic’d Up, including audio between referee Chris Kavanagh, assistant Stuart Burt, and VAR officials Michael Oliver and Tim Wood.

PGMOL chief refereeing officer Howard Webb defended the decision, explaining that officials had to judge whether Robertson’s movement near the goalkeeper affected his ability to save the ball. Webb said:

> “As the ball approaches Robertson—just three yards from goal—he ducks under it. Officials must determine whether that action impacts the goalkeeper. It’s subjective, but given his proximity, it’s understandable why they concluded it did affect Donnarumma’s ability to make the save.”

Webb also emphasized that VAR’s role is to assess whether the on-field decision is “clearly and obviously wrong,” noting only the goalkeeper truly knows if he was impacted.

Transcript highlights from the VAR review:

Stuart Burt (Assistant Referee): “Robertson’s in the keeper’s line of vision. He’s ducked under the ball. I think he’s impacted Donnarumma.”

Chris Kavanagh (Referee): “Ok, so offside then. On-field decision is offside.”

Michael Oliver (VAR): “Confirming the on-field offside decision against Robertson. He’s very close to the goalkeeper and makes an obvious movement in front of him. Check complete: offside.”

Tim Wood (VAR): “I agree with the on-field decision. It’s a clear, obvious action that impacts the goalkeeper.”