ENGLAND, UK – Liverpool’s charismatic manager, Jurgen Klopp, will miss Sunday’s match against Aston Villa at Anfield and has received a hefty £75,000 fine, following a two-match ban on Thursday, May 18, 2023, due to critical comments he made about referee Paul Tierney after Liverpool’s nail-biting 4-3 victory over Tottenham in April.
The Football Association, FA, suspended Klopp’s second match until the end of the 2023-24 season, meaning he will not be absent for the crucial final game of this campaign against Southampton.
Klopp’s harsh criticisms were fueled by his belief that Tierney held a bias against Liverpool, a claim that the referee and the governing body, Professional Game Match Officials Limited, PGMOL, have strongly refuted.
Klopp was issued a yellow card for his celebratory actions following Liverpool’s decisive goal in the 94th minute, and later declared that what Tierney said to him during the incident was “not OK”.
The PGMOL stated that it “strongly refutes” any allegations that Tierney’s actions were “improper”.
In a letter sent in response to the charges, Liverpool stood by Klopp, suggesting that emotions ran high during the tense match.
They stated that Klopp had not intended to “question Tierney’s integrity”, but raised concerns about several “questionable decisions” involving the club.
However, the FA countered, describing Klopp’s comments as a “particularly serious example of misconduct”, expressing its disturbance at the “very aggressive nature” of Klopp’s behavior toward the fourth official, John Brooks.
Klopp, regretting his actions, wrote a letter of apology, acknowledging his words in the post-match interview were “inappropriate” and “driven by emotion”.
The Liverpool manager also expressed his dissatisfaction with the conversation with Tierney when he booked him, terming it as “unacceptable”.
The FA provided insight into the incident by releasing the transcript of Tierney’s words to Klopp: “Right, I have to show you yellow… it could be red, but I am going to show you yellow. He [VAR] said yellow. We will give you the benefit of the doubt, don’t do anything more.”
This is not Klopp’s first encounter with FA’s disciplinary actions.
He was previously handed a one-match ban after he was sent off against Manchester City in October for harshly criticizing an assistant referee.
The independent commission recognized Klopp’s “poor disciplinary record” when determining his punishment.
