Ex-Premier League referee: Major VAR change in the pipeline for Liverpool after reveal
Keith Hackett has suggested Liverpool and the rest of the Premier League will soon be able to hear the conversations between referees and the VAR.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, the ex-Fifa and Premier League referee delivered his verdict after Mike Dean publicly backed the idea.
Dean, who will become a dedicated VAR official in 2022-23 after retiring as a referee, told the Times last week (13 July) that the change could come in within three years.
Howard Webb looks set to replace Mike Riley as the head of the PGMOL before the end of the calendar year and Hackett has suggested he could usher in the chage.
He told Football insider correspondent Connor Whitley: “I’ve thought for a long time now that the conversation between referee and VAR should take place publicly.
“It’s good that Mike Dean has come out and said this.
“It will be interesting to see how the PGMOL and the Premier League feel about him coming out and making a public statement.
“I genuinely believe most referees are on the same page and think it should be allowed so you can listen in.
“We see a ray of sunlight across the horizon with the removal of Mike Riley and the impending appointment of Howard Webb who will need a few weeks under the table then hopefully he will start to make the changes.
“Howard’s already proved, if he is the choice, that the way VAR has been handled, initially by him communicating to clubs but the key driver in America has been Greg Barkey.
“Please Howard, I’m making a plea to you. If you’re taking this job then bring Greg Barkey across because he’s the guy who will input the required change to make VAR less troublesome.”
In other news, Liverpool may have next Virgil van Dijk in their ranks after a “big” reveal.