Graeme Souness felt Jurgen Klopp was ‘inciting the crowd’ at Anfield in Liverpool’s 1-0 win over Manchester City on Sunday.
The stadium was hostile during the showdown between title rivals. This made for a passionate encounter on the pitch.
Some people were not happy with the outcome. refereeing decisions madeThey were the main flashpoints.
Pep Guardiola, City manager, was furious that his team had a goal disallowed for fouling in the build up. Klopp, Liverpool counterpart was sent off for pushing an assistant referee in the face after his side were denied late-on a free kick.
Liverpool legend Souness told talkSPORT: “There’s a responsibility for managers, and it’s rich coming from me as I would my head in every game I was involved in on the touchline.
“But there are parameters, you can’t go in the face of the linesman like Jurgen Klopp did yesterday when he’s trying to do his job.
“He got sent off correctly in my opinion.
“You can’t do that, that’s inciting the crowd to act in a different way.”
Klopp was reacting to a foul not being given on match-winner Mo Salah by Silva deep in City’s half and Souness continued: “They weren’t denied a goalscoring opportunity, it was out in the full-back area, it wasn’t a nasty foul, it was a clumsy attempt at a four that wasn’t given.
“I don’t think it warranted the reaction it got from Klopp. He was simply planting a seed. Maybe there was some acting.
“Coaches and managers have a responsibility. People will point at me and think I didn’t always behave. I hold my hands up – you get caught in the moment.
“Crowds bounce off the reaction from their managers. If they feel that he is the expert, and they are upset by the challenge or foul, they will react accordingly. That is where the balancing act has to come in.”
Souness was elated at Klopp’s ability to get his team back on track after a difficult start.
“I thought they were fabulous,” he said.
“Liverpool in the last five years or so have been fantastic. They played with an intensity few others have ever been able match for the full 90 minutes.
“The intensity has been missing this year. Their midfield is not as intense and their closing down is what causes most of their problems. It gets you on your front foot quicker, gets the ball in your strikers faster, and protects your back defenders.
“If you are playing against someone who is constantly in your face, your head is down, and it is not allowing you to make cute and clever passages that you want to make. It was the biggest problem I had and it was still there yesterday. It was back.”
There was some disappointment from one side’s supporters,Souness seemed to be enjoying the atmosphere at Anfield from the Liverpool fans who cheered on their team.
He continued: “People will say it’s a great atmosphere in the stadium. Liverpool fans were amazing. It’s not because of the songs they were singing, they were challenging every challenge the players made.
“They were challenging everything. City found it extremely difficult.
“But I think the referee, by and large, had a good game yesterday. The Liverpool crowd were up for it.”
Simon Jordan, a former owner of Crystal Palace, said that managers should be calm but that it shouldn’t be linked to incidents at lower levels where referees have been abused.
He said: “When you behave that way, you get sent off. I observed him. [Souness] on the touchline years ago and I don’t think I’ve seen anyone go at an official like I saw him do when we played Blackburn at home in my first year [as Crystal Palace owner].
“The bottom line is you kind of half want it. You want the balance right.
“That does not conflate a manager screaming at an official and getting sent off and all the consequences with that, to someone walking up to a referee and punching his face in.
“We can make it that way and say it’s at the beginning of the journey, but people have to be responsible for their individual behaviour.
“I know it’s not the greatest look and I don’t want it either. I want them to calm themselves down at times.”
