The FA have publicly released the details of a letter sent by Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp apologising for his comments towards referee Paul Tierney last month.
His comments centred around being shown a yellow card after Diogo Jota’s winner, as a result of celebrating in the face of fourth official John Brooks.
In his post-match press conference, the German told Sky Sports: “We have a history with Mr Tierney. I really don’t know what this man has with us. He always will say there’s nothing and it’s not true. It cannot be.
“What he said to me when he gave me the yellow card… it’s not okay.”
Klopp’s comments were judged as ‘[constituting] improper conduct as they imply bias, question the integrity of the referee, are personal, offensive, and bring the game into disrepute’.
He will now serve a two-match touchline ban, with one of those matches suspended, meaning he will have to watch Liverpool’s final home game of the season against Aston Villa from the stands.
And he did subsequently write a written letter of apology to the FA, outlining his regret at the comments made and offering an explanation for them.
Klopp letter of apology revealed
The letter reads: “I want to start this submission with the most important sentiment I must express: I am sorry.
“I am sorry for my reaction in that immediate moment when I ran towards the fourth official, Mr Brooks and I fully accepted a caution was justified. I accepted that then and I accept now that a yellow card was correct.
“Equally I am sorry for some of the tone and content of my post-match interview. Although it was not my intention I accept now it appears that I was questioning Mr Tierney’s integrity. I take ownership of this. On reflection, the words I used were inappropriate.
Klopp added that both of the incidents were ‘driven by emotion’, which led to ‘frustration and a feeling of unfairness’ prior to entering his post-match interview.
He continued: “I do ask that you look at the comments I made in the following context; we are, as managers, contractually required to make ourselves available in a timely fashion. This doesn’t readily allow for a more measured approach. Also, English is not my primary language and at times what I mean to say and how I say it can conflict.
The German stated how he was ‘trying to express how I felt whilst dealing with the frustration I was feeling around a number of decisions made during the game’, before adding: “To be absolutely clear, I know that Mr Tierney, along with all other officials, do their work without any preconceived bias or prejudice.
“Although not an excuse, I believe we have made up a high percentage of Mr Tierney’s matches this season? Something in the region of 20 per cent of the matches he has officiated have involved my team.
“I do not offer this as a defence, rather it is an observation and could be a reason for both the build-up of frustration governed by an inadvertent accumulation of incidents over an extended period.
“Hopefully you saw in my very next press conference (Tuesday 2nd May, 2023) I sought to clarify and correct any wrong conclusions drawn from the words I used in the interview on Sky Sports, which took place matter minutes after a tumultuous and highly dramatic game ended.”
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