"Asking for a replay is just ridiculous" - Pundit unhappy with Jurgen Klopp's suggestion after Liverpool's controversial loss to Tottenham
Pundit Jermaine Jenas recently expressed his opinions on Jurgen Klopp's suggestion that Liverpool's controversial clash against Tottenham Hotspur be replayed.
The spotlight of the controversy revolved around Luis Diaz's disallowed goal in the 34th minute of the Premier League clash. The Colombian seemed to have put Liverpool ahead, only for the goal to be erroneously disallowed due to an offside call.
Despite the Reds' spirited effort, they succumbed to Tottenham with a final score of 2-1, having gone down to nine men. Ahead of their UEFA Europa League against Union Saint-Gilloise on October 5, manager Jurgen Klopp advocated for the game to be replayed
But when the topic arose during a discussion preceding the UEFA Champions League's second matchday on TNT Sports, Jenas remarked (via Eurosport):
"Yeah, I get his frustration. It was an absolute shocker from the PGMOL and VAR in general, [but] where do you draw the line? And then Spurs will ring up and go ‘well actually, you know the [Moussa] Sissoko handball in the Champions League final [in 2019]?’"
He continued:
"Should we replay the Champions League final then at the same time because all of a sudden they changed the handball rules the year after? So, it's a really unfortunate thing and I get his frustration, I think asking for a replay is just ridiculous though."
The defeat was the Reds' first defeat against Tottenham in six years and their first at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Klopp advocates for match replay amid ongoing VAR dispute in Liverpool's clash with Tottenham
In a recent media interaction, Liverpool's head coach Jurgen Klopp delved deeper into the contentious VAR decision from their clash against Tottenham. This followed an incorrect offside verdict that deprived Luis Diaz of a goal.
Notably, during his Wednesday (October 4) press briefing, the Liverpool manager discussed a match replay as a remedy, saying (via Eurosport):
"They didn't do it on purpose and we should not 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."
He added:
"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."
In a contest that had seen the Reds down to 10 men with no goals on the board, forward Luis Diaz seemingly broke the deadlock for the visitors. Much to the chagrin of Anfield supporters and players alike, the goal was rescinded citing offside. However, this was due to miscommunication between the VAR officials and the on-field referee.
Liverpool, however, eventually went a further man down in the second half after Diogo Jota's sending off and lost 2-1.