VAR from Liverpool vs Everton derby last month taken off duty for Liverpool vs Leicester game in Premier League on Sunday; Premier League leaders visit third-placed champions live on Sky Sports at 7.15pm
Thursday 19 November 2020 12:02, UK
David Coote will not be the video assistant referee for Sunday's Premier League game between Liverpool and leaders Leicester.
Coote was the VAR on duty for the 2-2 draw at Goodison Park last month in which Jordan Pickford escaped a red card for his challenge on Virgil van Dijk, a tackle which left the Liverpool captain needing surgery on a knee injury and has left him sidelined for a lengthy period of time.
Andre Marriner has replaced Coote as the VAR at Anfield, where third place plays first place live on Sky Sports Premier League at 7:15pm on Sunday.
Coote will referee Manchester United's game against West Bromwich Albion on Saturday night at Old Trafford.
Liverpool contacted the Premier League to question the failure to scrutinise Pickford's challenge on van Dijk and take appropriate action in the game in October.
The Football Association confirmed Pickford would face no retrospective action as the incident was seen by the match officials at the time.
Van Dijk has since undergone surgery to repair the anterior cruciate ligament damage he sustained as a result of the challenge.
Liverpool's defensive crisis was dealt another blow after Joe Gomez suffered a serious injury on England duty, joining Virgil van Dijk and Fabinho on the treatment table.
To compound the growing injury list, influential right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold also withdrew from international duty with a calf strain sustained during the 1-1 draw at Manchester City - while Andrew Robertson missed Scotland's 1-0 defeat to Slovakia on Sunday night, in addition to Henderson limping out of England's defeat in Belgium.
But have Liverpool picked up the most injuries this season? Data compiled by Premier Injuries reveals Jurgen Klopp's side have picked up 15 injuries lasting 10 days or more this season - only Manchester City have suffered more (16).
Liverpool vs Leicester will be shown live on Sky Sports next week when the Premier League champions take on the current league leaders in a mouth-watering top-of-the-table clash.
The match has been confirmed as being broadcast live on Sky Sports following the Premier League's decision to discontinue their pay-per-view model which was introduced in October.
In a statement, the league confirmed "all fixtures from Saturday 21 November, and throughout the Christmas and New Year period, will be made available to fans to watch live in the UK."
"There is a full schedule of Premier League games over the festive period and clubs are committed to an accessible solution for fans. These plans have been made with the cooperation of our broadcast partners, working with us to deliver these additional matches while stadiums are missing the supporters who are such an integral part of the game."
Liverpool vs Leicester - which has been rescheduled for a 7:15pm kick-off on Sunday night - is one of three extra matches to be shown on Sky Sports next weekend. Burnley vs Crystal Palace and Wolves vs Southampton will also be broadcast live on Monday November 23.
Sky Sports had already confirmed it would broadcast Tottenham vs Man City next weekend on Saturday November 21 followed by a Super Sunday double-header of Sheffield United vs West Ham and Leeds vs Arsenal.
