Jurgen Klopp has revealed he held an open and calm conversation with referee Anthony Taylor after being sent off during Liverpool ’s win over Manchester City.
Mohamed Salah’s second-half goal was enough to earn the Reds an impressive Anfield win, but Klopp’s afternoon in the dugout ended prematurely after he was shown a red card by Taylor.
The German boss is now awaiting to discover his punishment from the Football Association, after reacting angrily to Salah not being awarded a free kick.
The Kop boss could face a touchline ban for his actions, however the FA are awaiting the referee’s report from the game before deciding on the severity of the sanctions. And that means in all likelihood he will be on the touchline against West Ham in midweek - something his opposite number David Moyes has advocated for.
"I think I will be there tomorrow because nothing has really happened yet", he said. "I don't think something will happen tomorrow to be honest, a few hours before the game.”
Klopp has apologised for the way he conducted himself during what was a tempestuous and controversial affair with City. He also admitted he sought out Taylor following the full-time whistle, where the pair spoke amicably about the preceding 90 minutes.
He added: "I explained after the game, in this moment you could not bring me in this mood. No chance. But the whole game led to that maybe a little bit. The way it went, the way it was a very, very intense game with a lot of decisions which both managers didn't understand on both sides.
"For me it was like, I don't know, in Germany we say, 'the one drop that made the bucket overflow.' I'm not happy with my reaction but that's the way it was and everybody saw it.
"I was sitting after the game in the office of Anthony Taylor and spoke, completely calmly, about all the situations. How I saw the game, how he saw the game. It was a completely calm discussion. That's the situation. I got a red card and now we wait for the process."
Liverpool take on West Ham at Anfield on Wednesday as they look to continue to close the gap on the early season pace-setters. The Hammers are also looking to put their disappointing start to the season behind them, but Moyes has claimed he wants Klopp alongside him, defending his counterpart’s actions.
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"First thing I say is I hope he is in the opposite [dugout] because part of this job is you want to go and play against the best and you want to compete against them and Jurgen is up there with them all for what he has done with Liverpool over the years," Moyes explained.
"His actions are part of it and he was really heated but if you were in that position on Sunday you would probably do the same. But we've all got great respect for referees and the work they have to do. I hope, in their way, they will understand that for 90 minutes or a bit longer we can sometimes lose our heads here and there a little bit.”
