The Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) has announced changes ahead of the highly anticipated fixture pitting Premier League leaders Arsenal against Manchester City.
According to PGMOL, they have replaced the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) official for the crunch tie following the controversial decisions that were made over the weekend.
John Brooks, who made an error by disallowing a goal scored by Brighton & Hove Albion in their 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace, was supposed to officiate the crunch tie.
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However, that is not the case anymore since Brooks has been replaced by Andre Marriner.
PGMOL also announced that Marriner will be in charge of the upcoming clash between arch-rivals Everton and Liverpool FC.
Brighton & Hove Albion was not the only club that was denied a chance of picking up three vital points due to blunders made by VAR officials.
Arsenal found themselves in a similar situation in their 1-1 draw with Brentford after Ivan Toney’s late equalizer was allowed to stand despite his teammate coming from an offside position before assisting his goal.
The PGMOL was forced to write to both Arsenal and Brighton & Hove Albion and acknowledge the mistakes.
“PGMOL can confirm its Chief Refereeing Officer Howard Webb has contacted both Arsenal and Brighton & Hove Albion to acknowledge and explain the significant errors in the VAR process in their respective Premier League fixtures on Saturday,” a statement from body read.
The Arsenal versus Manchester City match is slated for Wednesday, February 15th at the Emirates Stadium.
It is an important one because it is likely to decide the winner of the 2022/2023 Premier League title.
PGMOL is responsible for match officials in England. It is headed by the former Premier League referee Howard Webb.