Paul Tierney will not officiate a Premier League game this weekend but will take on VAR duties for Arsenal’s game against Brentford.
Refereeing body Professional Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) said the appointment was not punishment for his mistake in Liverpool’s 99th-minute winner at Nottingham Forest last Saturday.
Tierney has been a top referee since 2015 and has refereed 22 Premier League games this season and served as VAR 23 times. He was subject to VAR four times last month, most recently in Burnley’s home game against Arsenal on February 17.
Forest were so furious at Tierney’s failure to properly enforce the law in the 97th minute, 1 minute and 50 seconds before Darwin Nunez’s header of the winner, that Forest boss Evangelos Mari Evangelos Marinakis confronted the referee in the tunnel minutes after the final whistle.
Forest first-team coach Steven Reid was sent off for venting his anger on Tierney as the referee came down the tunnel. After the goal, a fan running towards the pitch from the Brian Clough Stand was stopped by Forest defender Murillo after heading straight towards Tierney.
Tierney mistakenly handed the ball to Coim Kelleher to restart play after a collision between the Liverpool goalkeeper and defender Ibrahima Konate. International Football Association Board (IFAB) law states that Forest should have conceded a goal because one of their players, Callum Hudson-Odoi, was in possession of the ball when the referee suspended play.
The restart did not lead to an immediate winner for Liverpool, with Forest regaining possession before Nunez headed home Alexis McAllister’s cross. Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp highlighted how Forest regained possession by dropping the ball early in the first half after Harvey Elliott’s shot was blocked by Forest’s Ryan Yates , and his team made almost the same decision.
Forest took the unprecedented step of allowing former FIFA and Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg, recently hired by the club in a consultant capacity, to be interviewed and he was critical of Tierney’s performance. Clattenburg has vowed to discuss the decisions with his former employer PGMOL.
Former Premier League referee Mike Dean told Sky Sports that Tierney made a “huge mistake”. He said: “Unfortunately for Paul it was a mistake and a bad mistake. It ended up leading to a goal. It had a big impact, and rightfully so.”
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At Forest’s last home game, last Wednesday’s FA Cup fifth-round loss to Manchester United, Clattenburg sat next to PGMOL chief referee Howard Webb. Forest hired Clattenburg as a refereeing analyst after being dissatisfied with a series of decisions this season.
Forest made a formal complaint to Webb and the Premier League after Ivan Toney moved the ball ahead of a free-kick in January’s defeat to Brentford, resulting in a controversial goal. Forest have submitted three formal complaints to the league over officiating decisions this season.
Sonny Singh Gill will make Premier League history this weekend when he becomes the first British South Asian to officiate a match in the Premier League. Singh Gill will be in charge of Crystal Palace’s home game against Luton Town.
