Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp was the subject of some harsh words by West Ham United boss Manuel Pellegrini, following the 1-1 draw between the two teams.
As reported by Daily Mail, West Ham United manager Manuel Pellegrini has hit out at his Liverpool counterpart Jurgen Klopp, following the 1-1 stalemate between the two teams at the London Stadium on Monday night.
Liverpool came into the game with a two-point advantage over second-placed Manchester City in the Premier League title race and had an excellent chance to stretch their lead at the top of the table. But, they dropped points against the Hammers, as they were held to a stalemate by Pellegrini’s side.
However, it could have been much worse for the Reds, who were extremely lucky with their first goal. James Milner, playing as right-back, was in an offside position when Adam Lallana passed the ball to him, which led to Sadio Mane opening the scoring for the Reds.
Following the match, Klopp was seen being involved in a heated exchange with referee Kevin Friend, with latest reports from The Sun claiming that the German tactician branded the match official ‘arrogant’.
Pellegrini has been at the receiving end of a wrong offside decision going up against Klopp previously, when his Malaga side were beaten 3-2 by Borussia Dortmund. In that instance, as many as three Dortmund players were in an offside position in the lead-up to the winner, but the decision went in favour of Klopp’s side.
Taking a dig at the German manager, Pellegrini, in his post-match interview on Monday night, said, “Klopp is used to winning with offside goals. He beat me against Malaga with a goal seven metres offside. So he cannot complain about anything.”
“They scored a goal one metre offside. In the last minute with Origi in front of the linesman, again one metre offside.”
The former Manchester City manager further added, “I said in the week that we need to win this game for our fans and if we are going to give a hand to Manchester City, well, they are my club also. Maybe that was the reason the manager of Liverpool didn’t like it.”
Liverpool wasted a golden opportunity to increase their lead over Manchester City at the top of the table to five points. The 1-1 draw against West Ham has blown the title race wide open and it remains to be seen how the Reds bounce back from their setback.
