Liverpool fined £37,500 for surrounding referee against Man City
Liverpool have been hit with a fine of £37,500 by the FA for surrounding referee Simon Hooper in their loss to Manchester City on April 1.
Pep Guardiola’s men came from a goal down to inflict a 4-1 drubbing on the Reds, who were enraged when Rodri escaped a second booking for bringing down Cody Gakpo in the first half.
The Spaniard had only been cautioned a couple of minutes before clipping Gakpo while Liverpool tried to surge forward, and several of Jurgen Klopp’s players remonstrated aggressively with Hooper.
“The club admitted failing to ensure that its players conducted themselves in an orderly fashion and do not behave in any way that is improper. An independent Regulatory Commission imposed Liverpool’s fine following a subsequent hearing.”
Liverpool have now been hit with fines in both of their Premier League clashes with Man City this term, as Klopp was left £30,000 short after giving a linesman an earful in October’s win at Anfield.
News of the Reds’ punishment came after the FA decided that no further action would be taken against linesman Constantine Hatzidakis after an alleged elbow on Andy Robertson in last week’s draw with Arsenal.
With Liverpool 2-1 down at half time at Anfield, Robertson approached the official with an unspecified complaint, and Hatzidakis appeared to react by thrusting his elbow towards the Scotsman’s chin.
Hatzidakis was dropped from this weekend’s Premier League fixtures while the PGMOL investigated the footage, but the FA have deemed that no punishment is necessary.
Klopp admitted at the time that he did not get a good view of the incident, but he believes that the process was handled “really well”, with Robertson accepting an apology and explanation from Hatzidakis over Zoom.
“I think it has been dealt with really well. I wasn’t aware of it during the game,” Klopp told reporters during Friday’s press conference. “I spoke to Robbo and the other guys, not the assistant, but now we can carry on.” —Sportsmole
