English Premier League referee David Coote was on Monday suspended after a video was posted on social media appearing to show him making derogatory remarks about former Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp.
It is unclear when the video was made or how it came into circulation and the British Press Association said it had not verified it.
According to the clip, Coote said Klopp was “arrogant” and used offensive language.
Photo: AFP
The BBC said the video appeared to refer to a match that Coote officiated between Liverpool and Burnley in July 2020, which finished 1-1.
Klopp criticized Coote after the match, saying the referee had been too lenient in his treatment of Burnley challenges.
Refereeing body Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) said in a statement on Monday that “David Coote has been suspended with immediate effect pending a full investigation.”
“PGMOL will be making no further comment until that process is complete,” it said.
Coote, 42, refereed Liverpool’s 2-0 win against Aston Villa on Saturday.
Klopp left Liverpool at the end of last season after nearly nine years in charge at Anfield.
The German was critical of Coote over an incident in a match against Arsenal last season in which Gunners midfielder Martin Odegaard’s hand made contact with the ball.
Coote, as Video Assistant Referee (VAR), did not advise on-field official Chris Kavanagh to review the incident.
“How can a guy in an office see that and not come to the conclusion that maybe, possibly, it could be worth the referee having another look?” Klopp said after the match.
Coote was also the VAR in the Merseyside derby at Goodison Park in October 2020 when Toffees goalkeeper Jordan Pickford inflicted a season-ending injury on Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk.
Pickford was not sent off for the challenge and did not face retrospective action because, under English Football Association rules, that can only happen if an incident was not seen either at the time or when it was reviewed by VAR.
Brazil has four teams, more than any other country, in the expanded Club World Cup that kicked off yesterday in the US, but for SE Palmeiras, the competition holds a special meaning: winning it would provide some redemption. Under coach Abel Ferreira since 2020, Palmeiras lifted two Copa Libertadores titles, plus Brazilian league, cup and state championships. Even before Ferreira, it boasted another South American crown and 11 league titles. The only major trophy missing is a world champions’ title. Other Brazilian clubs like Fluminense FC and Botafogo FR, also in the tournament, have never won it either, but the problem for Palmeiras
Badminton world No. 3 Anders Antonsen clinched his first Indonesia Open title yesterday after beating Taiwan’s Chou Tien-chen, while South Korea’s An Se-young won her second championship in Jakarta. The 28-year-old Dane sank world No. 7 Chou at the Indonesian capital’s Istora Senayan arena, winning 22-20, 21-14 in a 60-minute match to secure the prestigious Super 1000 event. Antonsen came out on top in a tightly contested first game before cruising to victory in the second. In a more closely fought women’s singles final, South Korean ace and world No. 1 An fought back from one game down to beat China’s
‘STILL’: In front of a packed New Jersey arena attended by Donald Trump and Mike Tyson, UFC 316 delivered high drama as Merab Dvalishvili retained his title Georgia’s Merab Dvalishvili scored a second-round submission win over Sean O’Malley to retain his bantamweight title at Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) 316 on Saturday, with Kayla Harrison also winning by submission in the co-main event, tapping out Juliana Pena to claim the women’s bantamweight crown. In front of a packed crowd at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, which included US President Donald Trump and retired heavyweight great Mike Tyson, Dvalishvili, a 34-year-old from the country of Georgia, won the belt in a convincing, although not aesthetically pleasing, unanimous decision. Dvalishvili (19-4) sat on top of the cage and shouted
Manchester City on Monday completed the signing of left-back Rayan Ait-Nouri from Wolverhampton Wanderers for a reported ￡31 million (US$41.8 million). The 24-year-old Algeria international has signed a five-year contract and will be available for the FIFA Club World Cup, which begins later this week. Ait-Nouri is expected to be just one of a trio of new City faces for that tournament with deals close to completion for AC Milan midfielder Tijjani Reijnders and Olympique Lyonnais playmaker Rayan Cherki. After missing out on a major trophy in the recently completed season for the first time since 2016-2017, City are hoping
RSS