Jurgen Klopp finally lifted the lid on what Paul Tierney told him after the German remonstrated before the fourth official after Diogo Jota’s match-winning goal.
The official’s comments were carried on Twitter by Matt Addison during Jurgen Klopp’s pre-Fulham press conference.
🔴 "Paul Tierney came over to me, I didn't expect for a second a red card, and he said: 'For me, it's a red card but because of him (the 4th official) it's a yellow'. I opened the box which I didn't want to open."
— Matt Addison (@MattAddison97) May 2, 2023
It’s understood that there will be a reaction from the FA, with the 55-year-old’s comments adjudged by many to have questioned the integrity of the Englishman.
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In Klopp’s defence, it’s certainly worth pointing out that Tierney has history when it comes to bad calls in relation to the officiating of Liverpool games, with the failure to punish Harry Kane, in an encounter with Spurs in London back in December 2021, for a dangerous challenge on Andy Robertson often referenced.
Fans will remember, of course, that the Scot wasn’t quite so lucky when the tables turned, with the man in black handing the fullback his marching orders for a similarly dangerous tackle on Emerson Royal.
We must stress that this doesn’t excuse Klopp’s actions and any punishment dished out by the FA will be warranted.
However, we must likewise be able to question the quality of officiating and certainly patterns of poor officiating in this country, whilst also understanding the impact this can have on a manager’s behaviour.
The whole off field episode was triggered by Tierney blowing for a foul against Salah, when he was chasing the ball down the right in a dangerous position. No media outlet has seen fit to replay the incident, even Shearer on MOTD slated Klopp without any reference to why he reacted as he did. Salah was grappled throughout the game as he tends to be in most games and as he is so strong he is able to stay on his feet. Against City Bernardo did the same thing, in fact there is a photo of the incident with Bernardo clutching Mo’s shirt in each hand as he drags him down. The Spurs full back running side by side with Mo after the ball decided to try his luck, flopped and Tierney bought it. It was hugely frustrating not just for Klopp but the whole crowd were incensed. The biggest problem is that the officials clearly do not look back at these incidents, because if they did Salah would not be the 108th most fouled player in the Premier League.
Totally agree. In this woke culture they only choose the data that suits their agenda. This includes the FA and Ref Assoc. They say that Klopp should not live in the past. The problem is that Tierney does not learn from history and therefore is bound to make the same mistakes over and over again. They will demonise Klopp only because he highlights their faults. That in itself shows not only the arrogance of the FA and Ref Assoc (include pundits in this), but also their self-serving hypocrisy.
All Blacks did a very interesting thing, they changed to skin tight fitting shirts cause rugby had the same problem of shirt grabbing. Another interesting point in time wasting is that rugby stops the clock when the ball is not in play so that actual playing time is accurate.