Breaking News: Liverpool referee decision explained following rival complaints over Darwin Nunez winner

Darwin Nunez scored the game-winning goal for Liverpool in the 99th minute of Saturday’s Premier League match against Nottingham Forest, and many of Liverpool’s opponents were not pleased.

Referee Paul Tierney during the Premier League match between Nottingham Forest and Liverpool FC at City Ground on March 2, 2024 in Nottingham, England. (Photo by Neal Simpson/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images) (Image: 2024 Allstar)

After Arsenal complained about Darwin Nunez’s vital goal, the referee explained why he decided to award Liverpool’s last-gasp winner against Nottingham Forest on Saturday. Just minutes before Nunez scored the winning goal in the 99th minute, putting Liverpool four points ahead in the Premier League, Forest were forced to give up possession.

With a last-second goal from Luis Nunez—his fourteenth of the season—Jurgen Klopp’s squad stunned struggling Forest and earned an incredible victory at the City Ground.

After sitting out Liverpool’s previous three matches owing to a muscle injury, the Uruguayan returned for the final half an hour in the Midlands. Thanks to the victory, Liverpool now has a larger lead than Manchester City and Arsenal, who will face Manchester United and Sheffield United, respectively, in their upcoming matches on Sunday and Monday.

Forest fury erupts following Nunez, revealing their lack of focus

Still, the winning goal in the City Ground match was not without its detractors. Referee Paul Tierney erred in awarding Calum Hudson-Odoi the drop ball by Liverpool just before the goal, as Forest were also attempting to score.

Caoimhin Kelleher of Liverpool and Ibrahima Konate of Chelsea collided near the post in the 97th minute after receiving a corner kick from Morgan Gibbs-White. Konate was left on the ground as a result of the collision.

The ball had already left the penalty area when referee Tierney halted play, and Hudson-Odoi was about to face Luis Diaz.

After a brief intermission, play resumed and the ball was passed to Liverpool. However, according to IFAB rules, Forest should have had the drop ball as they were the team in possession.

If the ball was in the penalty area or had its last touch there when play was stopped, then the defending team’s goalkeeper is the only one who can receive a drop ball, per rule 8.2. Here, Kelleher was the defender’s goalie.

For every other instance, the official is supposed to award a drop ball to “one player of the team that last touched the ball at the position where it last touched a player”—in this instance, a Forest man—in accordance with standard protocol.

Despite the fact that supporters of Nottingham Forest, Arsenal, and Manchester City have focused on this moment from Saturday’s match, the winning goal by Nunez came nearly two minutes after the dropped ball and two sequences of play later—during which Forest had already given away a throw-in and a corner kick.