Jurgen Klopp criticises referee Stuart Attwell following Liverpool’s defeat to Brentford

The defeat was Liverpool’s first against Brentford in all competitions since 1938, and was brought about by an own goal from Ibrahima Konate, in addition to goals from Ioan Wissa and Brian Mbemo.

Mbemo’s decisive goal came in the 84th minute. The forwards collected the long ball forward, sent the defenders to the ground with slight contact with Konate, and sent the ball home past Allison.

Klopp said after the game that the goal could not be respected, adding: You can see that in the Gentiles (Konate).

Asked by beIN Sports about speaking to match officials about the decision, Klopp said, “It’s really like talking to a microwave.

“VAR is hidden behind the words ‘obscure, not obvious’. Referees need to explain it.”

Klopp also criticized the physical nature of Brentford players’ rulings on offensive set-pieces, telling Sky Sports they were “expanding the rules” regarding contact.

“I don’t expect anything in our favour, but I do expect retention to be retention, push to be push and fouling to be fouling. There’s a reason we’ve been successful in attacks without it.

Brentford appeared to have scored from corner kicks three times in the first half. Twice he was ruled out for offside, but Konate’s own goals were good.

“I’m not happy with how we defended set-pieces. We didn’t play perfectly, but Brentford have expanded the rules in these moments. Obviously, that’s what we can do now with the referee.

“Don’t get me wrong, it’s clever, but yes. If you single out every situation, you’ll find five fouls. That’s what they do, and that’s good. Really, It’s really good.”

Brentford head coach Thomas Frank, when asked to respond to allegations that his team is expanding the rules, said: He has four people on the pitch and also has a VAR room. I think it’s harder than ever to score goals.

“Obviously, I’m glad he praised us. That’s a credit to us for doing a good job on our offensive set-pieces.”

Klopp also lamented the missed opportunity Liverpool had to lead early on, saying: We could have taken a 2-0 lead before they entered the first corner. We fought back, but it was the game they wanted more than the game we wanted.

“We had a moment in the second half and we knew we needed it over and over again. We were in a really good time then, but you can’t push through it. They can dictate it.” I was.

“The game was decided by the second goal, but it was entirely our fault. We are obviously not happy with our performance.”

The result moves Brentford to seventh in the Premier League standings, just two points behind sixth-placed Liverpool.

Deeper

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