Liverpool v West Ham: VAR backs the Reds and rival fans rage
By David Gate
Liverpool take the lead via the penalty spot against West Ham as rival fans rue VAR backing the Reds once again in the Premier League.
Liverpool Football Club and VAR are in the news again. The Reds benefitted from the video reference system once again as they were awarded a penalty against West Ham in the Premier League.
Divock Origi – in for the injured Sadio Mane – was hacked down in the box by Issa Diop midway through the first half.
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There was no doubt about the foul. The French center back lunged recklessly in on the Belgian forward and not even the most ardent Hammer was disagreeing with the whether it was a foul or not.
However, VAR was called into help see if Roberto Firmino inadvertently touched the ball with his hand in the build up.
The Brazilian did extremely well to bring the ball down and hold off the defender before laying it off to Origi.
From some angles it looked like the ball touched Firmino’s hand on the way down but there was nothing conclusive and it would have been harsh if it ruled out the penalty.
Mohamed Salah didn’t flinch from the spot. smashing the ball into the bottom right hand corner as Fabianski dived the wrong way.
Many felt that Origi owed Jurgen Klopp a good performance today after a poor showing in the FA Cup against Shrewsbury on Sunday.
Winning the first half penalty is good start to make up for the underwhelming display from the striker at the weekend.
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With Sadio Mane ruled out for at least two Premier League games, Klopp will be relying on Origi to make an impact in the next few weeks.