The rules on the field must be respected by the players before the referees. However, what happens when the highest authority of that field is the one who disrespects you? Something unprecedented happened in England and it is going around the world.
He English referee David Coote was suspended from the Premier League by the PGMOL (Premier referee association) for a video coming to light, where he criticizes a team and its former coach.
Coote whistled in a game Liverpool and a video showed what he shouted at that team and at former German coach Jurgen Klopp.
A PGMOL statement said: “David Coote has been suspended with immediate effect pending a full investigation.
“PGMOL will not be commenting further until that process is complete.”
Coote was the referee for Liverpool’s victory over Aston Villa at Anfield on Saturday night.
Liverpool have declined to comment.
Coote is one of the most experienced referees in the Premier League and has been refereeing top-flight matches since 2018.
The video shared appears to refer to a Premier League match Coote officiated between Liverpool and Burnley in July 2020, which ended 1-1.
Klopp criticized Coote after the match, saying that the referee did not call fouls for the goals on the Liverpool players.
In the video, the man purported to be Coote says Klopp “gave me a good knock when I refereed against Burnley in the closing round”. He calls Klopp arrogant and also insults several times when referring to him.
Footage circulating on social media appears to show Coote, 42, chatting to an unknown man, who asks him what he thinks of an unspecified Liverpool match.
“Liverpool were s#3rd,” responds the man who appears to be Coote.
When asked what he thinks of Klopp, he replies: “He’s a s#3rd. Absolute s#3rd,” before adding: “Aside from taking a good look at me when I refereed him against Burnley in lockdown, he then accused me of lying and then took a good swipe at me. And I have no interest in talking to someone who is too arrogant. So I try my best not to talk to him.”
It is currently unclear whether the video is authentic and, if so, when it was recorded.
