Jurgen Klopp Reveals What Paul Tierney Said To Him That Was "Not OK"

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has revealed what referee Paul Tierney said to him when issuing him with a yellow card during Sunday's 4-3 win over Tottenham.

Klopp is likely to face a punishment from the Football Association after making comments that appeared to infer that Tierney had an agenda against him and his team.

Speaking shortly after Sunday's game, Klopp accepted that his yellow card, for shouting something in the face of fourth official John Brooks after Diogo Jota scored a 94th-minute winner, had been deserved.

But an emotional Klopp also said in a post-match interview with Sky Sports that "we have our history with Mr Tierney", "I really don't know what this man has with us" and "what he said to me when he gave me the yellow card is not OK."

At the time, Klopp refused to elaborate on what Tierney had said that was so unacceptable.

However, the PGMOL, the organization responsible for Premier League referees, listened to the conversation by reviewing a recording from the referee's microphone and found that Tierney had "acted in a professional manner throughout".

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp pictured (left) receiving a yellow card from referee Paul Tierney during Sunday's 4-3 win over Tottenham

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On Tuesday, Klopp elaborated.

Klopp explained that Tierney told him that he ordinarily would have sent him off for his behavior but that the fourth official had advised him a yellow card was sufficient.

"The whole situation shouldn't have happened," said Klopp, as quoted by The Athletic. "It was out of emotion and anger in that moment. That was why I celebrated the way I did.

"There was the situation with the no foul on Mo [Salah]. It happened directly in front of my eyes. Then their goal. A minute later we scored, it should have been a moment where I was just happy, but unfortunately, I was still kind of angry.

"I didn't say anything wrong [to the fourth official], I was just shouting: 'Without you!' That was all. Turning in his direction wasn't right but I didn't get close to him.

"When Paul Tierney came over, I didn't expect a red card for a second. I expected a yellow card. He said to me: 'For me, it's a red card but because of him (Brooks) it's yellow.'

"He showed me the yellow and smiled to my face. I was stood there thinking: 'A red card? For what?'

"I tried to calm down but it didn't work out properly. I went into all the interviews and said what I said. I said what he said to me was not OK. And that's because it wasn't a red card in my view. I opened the box with that.

"Maybe I should have just said in that moment: 'He said it was a red card and I didn't think it was'. The rest was how I felt in that moment about Paul Tierney whistling our games."

Klopp pictured (right) complaining to referee Tierney after a game in December 2021

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