Referee Andre Marriner checks Var's monitor from the side of the pitch before awarding a penalty to Manchester United's Brighton Luke Shaw. Photo: Getty Images/Robin Jones
The original audio recording of the referees' conversations with Var officials and their assistants on match day will be broadcast for the first time on Sky Sports' flagship show Monday Night Football, with Howard Webb in the studio explaining how some of this season's most controversial decisions were made.
The chief referee of English football will appear alongside pundits Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville on Monday to discuss the incidents as well as the conversations that were taking place at the time between the four officials at the stadium and at the remote Var studio. All Premier League officials are due to attend a training camp at St George's Park on Monday and Tuesday. They are expected to be told on Monday which clips Webb will analyze on Sky and that they will all sit down to watch their boss' TV on the evening.
Webb, head umpire of Professional Game Match Officials Ltd, which oversees the top level umpires of the English game, has pushed for more transparency since taking over last December as Mike Riley's successor. Politics meant that he spent long periods of his week talking to disgruntled managers, but unlike previous regimes, he also promised to bring these explanations to the football public.
Same as his Monday night appearance . , the Premier League's own news agency, has produced a pilot show, Match Officials: Mic Up, which will be distributed to rights holders for broadcast on the same day. In it, Webb and former England striker and BT Sport pundit Michael Owen analyze this season's incidents and how Var officials and teams arrived at their decisions.
The move is a departure from PGMOL's position in the past, when it was reluctant to explain decisions or even complained about the many comments made by managers to officials. It is likely that Webb and PGMOL will authorize formal post-match referee interviews in the future.
Webb has also appointed a “key match incident” panel of former players including Rob Green, Karen Carney and Jonathan Walters. to judge officials' actions.
Webb has been ruthless with his own officials, leading to the end of Lee Mason's full-time role in February after a former Premier League referee made a mistake in Arsenal's draw against Brentford .
Furthermore, Mike Dean, who retired last season after 22 years and 560 appearances as a Premier League referee, has been removed from his permanent role as a barbarian. Webb will appear at the start of the MNF show, which will chronicle Liverpool's trip to Leicester City, who are in danger of relegation. Craig Pawson is the referee and Chris Kavanagh is the barbarian.
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