Jurgen Klopp Advocates for Replay After Controversial Liverpool vs. Tottenham Hotspur Match
Liverpool’s head coach, Jurgen Klopp, has voiced his belief that a replay should be granted following his team’s Premier League defeat to Tottenham Hotspur, which was marred by a disallowed goal that sparked controversy.
Liverpool traveled to London with an impressive 19-game unbeaten record and a seven-game winning streak.
However, their quest for victory took an unexpected turn when Luis Diaz’s goal was incorrectly disallowed only minutes before Son Heung-min opened the scoring for Tottenham.
Diaz had brilliantly latched onto Mohamed Salah’s through ball and found the back of the net.
Unfortunately, the linesman raised his flag for offside, prompting a VAR review. Replays clearly showed that Cristian Romero was playing Diaz onside, leading to the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) admitting to a “significant human error.”
This error ultimately cost Liverpool the match, as Joel Matip’s last-minute own goal handed Tottenham all three points.
In a bid to shed light on the decision-making process, the refereeing body released audio footage of the officials’ conversations during the match.
The audio revealed VAR Darren England informing referee Simon Hooper that the check was complete after drawing lines on Romero’s boot, initially believing the goal was valid.
However, England quickly learned that the offside flag had been raised, although play had already resumed from a Tottenham free kick, leaving the VAR official unable to intervene.
Liverpool promptly announced their intention to explore various options to rectify the situation, including the possibility of a replay.
Although it remains uncertain whether the club will push for a rematch, Klopp firmly believes it would be the right course of action.
Klopp stated,
“The audio didn’t change it at all because I was not really interested in why things happen. I saw the outcome, I saw a goal, and I saw it didn’t count. It’s really important that we deal with it in a proper way. They [the match officials] didn’t do it on purpose, and we shouldn’t forget that. Yes, it was a mistake. An obvious mistake. I think there would have been solutions. I think the outcome should be a replay. Probably won’t happen. As far as I can remember, something like that never happened, that’s why I think a replay should be played.”
Klopp also implored fans not to direct their anger at the officials, emphasizing that mistakes happen, and they likely felt remorseful about the incident.
Apart from the controversial decisions, Liverpool had to contend with injury setbacks during the match.
Cody Gakpo suffered an injury following his goal, ruling him out of the upcoming clash against Union SG.
Additionally, Stefan Bajcetic and Thiago Alcantara are sidelined with injuries, while Curtis Jones and Diogo Jota will be available for Thursday’s game before serving domestic suspensions.