Was Van Dijk's goal blatantly stolen against Man City?

A wave of controversy erupted after Virgil van Dijk's goal against Man City was disallowed due to an offside call.

Liverpool suffered their heaviest defeat this season in the Premier League when they were thrashed 0-3 at Man City's home ground in the 11th round.

However, the outcome could have been completely different if Van Dijk's first-half goal had been allowed. In the 39th minute, the Dutch defender leapt to head the ball into the far corner, leaving goalkeeper Donnarumma with no chance to save. Yet, after consulting with the VAR assistants, referee Chris Kavanagh decided to disallow Van Dijk's goal.

The reason given was that Andy Robertson, positioned behind Man City's defense in this situation, blocked Donnarumma's line of sight and movement. This was confirmed by the Professional Match Officials Limited in England.

According to Premier League regulations, a player can be penalized for offside if:

• They obstruct an opponent’s ability to play or have a clear line of sight to the ball;

• They challenge for the ball but impede the opponent’s chance to play it;

• They attempt to play the ball when it is close but their actions affect the opponent;

• They perform an obvious action that reduces the opponent’s ability to play the ball.

Applying these rules to the incident, it appears the referee and his assistants made an error in disallowing the goal.

It is clear from the play that Robertson stood in front of Donnarumma but did not actually block the Italian goalkeeper’s vision. Considering Van Dijk’s initial shot angle and Donnarumma’s position, the goalkeeper’s line of sight was almost entirely unobstructed.

Robertson then instinctively ducked to avoid the ball as it headed toward the goal. Looking at the ball’s final position in the net, it is evident Donnarumma had no chance to stop the shot.

Witnessing the controversial moment, even former Man City defender Micah Richards disagreed with the decision to cancel Van Dijk's equalizing goal.

Speaking on Sky Sports, the ex-England international said: “I don’t agree that Robertson committed a clear action. I think the decision was a bit harsh. The defender might have been trying to catch an offside, but in my view, the goalkeeper still had a clear view of the situation.”

Agreeing with this view, Gary Neville commented: “I believe Van Dijk was outside the goalkeeper’s line of sight. I understand why Slot was upset. The keeper couldn’t have stopped that header. His vision was completely clear.”

With this defeat, Liverpool dropped down to 8th place on the table with 18 points, trailing the top two teams, Arsenal and Man City, by eight and four points respectively.

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