It was announced on Thursday that Liverpool manager, Jurgen Klopp, would be banned from the touchline for two games and fined £75,000 for his antics on the sidelines during the Reds match against Tottenham Hotspur.
As BBC Sport report, in the post-match press conference after the game, the German had remarked that referee, Paul Tierney, had said something to him that was “not ok.”
It had long been speculated as to exactly what the nature of that conversation was, and the transcript from ` report which details the VAR audio of the game has been released to clear up any issues.
‘Mr Brooks contacted Mr Tierney and said Jurgen Klopp has just run and celebrated in my face. I think it’s a yellow card mate, minimum,’ it read.
‘It is clear that Mr Brooks considered Mr Klopp’s conduct to be misplaced celebration rather than an aggressive or threatening move. Mr Tierney responded, saying that he had not seen what happened and needed advice whether the sanction should be a yellow or red card.
‘The Video Assistant Referee reviewed the video footage and advised confirming yellow card. Confirming yellow card Jurgen Klopp.
‘Armed with this confirmation Mr Tierney went to Mr Klopp and showed him a yellow card, saying ‘Right… I have to show you yellow. … it could be red, but I am going to show you yellow. He said yellow. We will give you the benefit of the doubt, don’t do anything more….”
‘Mr Klopp’s frustrated reaction can be clearly seen in the video footage.’
Frankly, it pours cold water on the theory that Tierney had said anything even mildly controversial.
Klopp is a serial offender when it comes to intimidating officials and his antics could certainly be deemed to be a red card offence.
Following on from Howard Webb’s appearance on Sky Sports, where the head of PGMOL (Professional Game Match Officials Limited) allowed VAR from the Newcastle vs Arsenal game to be scrutinised, the release of this new information hints at a more transparent stance.
That can only be good for the game and is long overdue. It will also encourage those who play the game to think twice about their conduct, in the knowledge that, perhaps, it will become a discussion point at the end of a particular weekend.
It may not be enough to stop genuine emotion from bubbling to the surface of course, but can only be seen as a positive move.
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