The Football Association has charged Jurgen Klopp, the manager of Liverpool, with improper conduct despite his claims that he did not want to cast doubt on referee Paul Tierney’s honor.
The Reds’ manager racing down the touchline to celebrate wildly in front of fourth official John Brooks or his suggestions is in no way justified by the passion of a last-gasp 4-3 victory over Tottenham after being up 3-0. Klopp claimed he never intended to throw doubt on Tierney, who “had history” with the team.
But Klopp faces a misconduct charge and a lengthy touchline suspension as a result of his remarks that the referee was biased against Liverpool because of prior incidents.
The German manager said the referee told him his antics on the touchline were deserving of a red card, but Tierney instead elected to award a yellow card on the suggestion of Brooks, thus doing Klopp a favor.
After the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) rejected Tierney’s actions as “improper” and insisted a review of the recording proves Tierney behaved in a “professional manner,” Klopp, 55, said what Tierney said to him was “not OK” and insisted he has not lied about the interaction.
They imply bias, and/or question the integrity of the referee, and/or are personal/offensive, and/or bring the game into disrepute.
I probably have to expect the punishment.
I think the refs think I questioned the integrity (of their colleague), which when I am calm and sitting here I don’t do, but in that moment I just describe my feelings.
I am very sure he is not doing it intentionally but we have a history and I cannot deny that.
Of course they didn’t happen intentionally but they are still there and it’s a feeling and nothing else.
I know the refs were really angry about what I said and now go for it. I heard I was lying.
I did a lot of things that day but I didn’t lie. I shouldn’t have said a couple of things but lying was not one of them.
Jurgen Klopp said.
After the FA successfully appealed against an independent regulatory commission’s decision to only fine Klopp £30,000 for his behavior in confronting assistant referee Gary Beswick and subsequently being sent off by referee Anthony Taylor, Klopp served a one-game suspension in November.
He expressed guilt for once more letting his feelings overwhelm him.
We won a football game 4-3 in a very spectacular manner and the only headlines are the ones I created and I really regret that, It is absolutely not necessary and not how it should be.
The whole situation shouldn’t have happened at all. It was out of emotion, it was out of anger in that moment. That’s why I celebrated the way I celebrated.
Paul Tierney came over to me and I didn’t expect at all a red card. I know I had a red card not too long ago but I didn’t expect for a second a red card because I didn’t feel it was right.
He (Tierney) said to me ‘For me it’s a red card but because of him’ – that’s what I understood because it was loud in the stadium – ‘but because of him (Brooks) it’s yellow’. Showed me a yellow and smiled to my face. That’s it.
The final whistle we go inside and I try to calm down and it didn’t work out properly and I said what I said.
I said ‘What he said to me was not OK’ and I thought it was not OK because it was not a red card in my view.
I understand I opened the box. It was not intentional but I opened it.
Jurgen Klopp said.
In order to keep up their odd pursuit of Champions League football, Liverpool will take on Fulham on Wednesday hoping for a fourth straight victory.
It is inevitable that the manager will come under more scrutiny.