The major Liverpool suspension that impacts Aston Villa fixture as ‘imply bias’ statement made

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has been banned from the touchline for two games, with one suspended, for comments he made about referee Paul Tierney.

The Reds boss will be absent from the dugout at Anfield on Saturday as Aston Villa make the trip to Merseyside.

Klopp was charged by the FA after he said Tierney appears to have something “against” his team as Liverpool beat Tottenham Hotspur 4-3 in a dramatic encounter last month.

In an emotionally-charged affair, Liverpool went 3-0 up after 15 minutes before finding themselves pegged back to 3-3 in stoppage time. Diogo Jota need a last-gasp equaliser, with Klopp celebrating the goal in the face of the fourth official.

The Liverpool manager later apologised for his remarks about Tierney, which meant the length of his touchline ban was not as severe.

An FA statement read: “Jurgen Klopp has been suspended from the touchline for two matches and fined £75,000 following media comments that he made after Liverpool’s Premier League game against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday 30 April 2023.

“The first match of the manager’s touchline ban is effective immediately and the second is suspended until the end of the 2023/24 season on the condition that he does not commit any further breaches of FA Rule E3 in the meantime.

“Jurgen Klopp admitted that his comments regarding the match referee during post-match media interviews constitute improper conduct as they imply bias, question the integrity of the referee, are personal, offensive, and bring the game into disrepute

“An independent Regulatory Commission imposed these sanctions following a subsequent hearing and its written reasons can be seen below.”

As part of the written reasons, the Regulatory Commission stated: “Mr Klopp clearly recognises that he spoke inappropriately. Before he had been charged, Mr Klopp proactively addressed the matter in his interview on 2 May 2023.

“He explained that he had been swept away by the emotion of the moment, that he had not intended what had been attributed to him, and expressed his regret.

“That regret is evidenced by Mr Klopp’s speedy admission of the charge, and the fulsome apology and explanation that he offered in his letter of 3 May 2023.

“The Commission accepts that apology and regret to be genuine. 20. The Commission therefore accepts Mr Klopp’s apology, and recognises that he was speaking in the heat of the moment.

“Nevertheless, Mr Klopp is a high-profile figure, who is required to lead by example. He has a history of breaches, most recently in November 2022. The assertions that Mr Klopp made against Mr Tierney were unacceptable, ranging as they did beyond the immediate match.”