Liverpool’s tie with Paris St-Germain on Tuesday might have taken a very different course. Trailing 2-0 from the first leg, the Reds thought they had a lifeline when Maurizio Mariani pointed to the spot in the 64th minute — only for the video assistant referee to intervene and send him to the pitchside monitor. VAR overturned the decision and the momentum evaporated; five minutes later Ousmane Dembélé scored and PSG ran out 2-0 winners on the night, 4-0 on aggregate.
Arne Slot saw that moment as emblematic of Liverpool’s season. He argued his side have often been on the wrong end of marginal calls, noting several instances where opponents were awarded penalties for minimal contact while other situations involving Liverpool did not prompt VAR action. “So many decisions have gone against us this season,” he said, adding that if a referee doesn’t initially give a penalty, VAR often won’t step in to overturn that non-decision.
The PSG incident centred on Alexis Mac Allister contesting a loose ball and then going to ground with Willian Pacho behind him. Mariani gave the spot-kick, but VAR Marco Di Bello sent him to the monitor after replays showed contact on the back of Mac Allister’s
