Liverpool’s next Premier League match sees them host Aston Villa, with the choice of referee and VAR for the clash unlikely to prove very popular.
Arne Slot‘s side have one game remaining in the league before the final international break of 2024, with a victory over Villa to consolidate their early place at the top of the table.
The visitors arrive at Anfield in sixth place, seven points behind Liverpool and with just one win in their last four outings in the competition.
Ahead of the fixture, the Premier League have confirmed that David Coote will referee the match and Paul Tierney will act as lead VAR.
The pair do not have the greatest reputation when it comes to Liverpool fans, and their appointments will likely be met with a groan or disbelieving laughter.
Coote is, of course, infamous for his incompetence on VAR when Virgil van Dijk suffered a season-ending injury at Everton in 2020 and for missing Arsenal‘s basketball attempts last season.
It is his first time taking charge of a Liverpool match on the pitch since the Reds’ comeback win over Brighton in March, which was assessed as a “Hall of Shame performance” by fans.
On that day, there were several soft yellow cards, along with penalty shouts from both Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah swiftly waved away.
He was jeered by both sets of fans, which takes some doing!
Tierney, Jurgen Klopp‘s nemesis, will be overseeing the match at Stockley Park and that may not fill a lot of fans with confidence.
According to ESPN, no official made more VAR errors than the 43-year-old during the 2023/24 campaign, with his four equalled only by Stuart Attwell. He averaged an error every 7.75 games.
Timothy Wood and Craig Taylor will serve as Coote’s assistants at Anfield, with Sam Allison acting as fourth official.
Sian Massey-Ellis will be the assistant VAR alongside Coote, it is her second Liverpool match this season after taking on the same role against Bournemouth.
