Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk has questioned the referee’s choice to not hand Tottenham Hotspur‘s Lucas Bergvall a second yellow card earlier than the 18-year-old scored the profitable objective within the Carabao Cup semifinal between the edges.
Stuart Attwell, the official answerable for the sport, had earlier booked Bergvall for a foul on Luis Díaz and performed benefit after one other late deal with from the Swede on Kostas Tsimikas.
As Liverpool’s assault petered out, Attwell didn’t cease play to point out a yellow card to Bergvall and moments later {the teenager} slotted previous Alisson after advantageous work from Dominic Solanke whereas Tsimikas was off the pitch receiving remedy.
“It was fairly apparent there was gonna be a second yellow,” Van Dijk instructed Sky Sports after the sport.
“It was fairly clear, after which a minute later he scores the winner. Listen, it’s what it’s. [The referee] made a mistake in my view and I instructed him that. He thinks he did not. It was fairly apparent and everybody on the sideline knew it.
“There’s a linesman there, there is a fourth official, there’s VAR … and he does not get a second yellow. I’m not saying that is the explanation we misplaced, nevertheless it was a giant second within the sport.”
The Netherlands stalwart did add that Attwell’s name wasn’t the one purpose Liverpool will head to Anfield to play the second leg dealing with a deficit.
“We performed towards an intense group with good attacking gamers who maintain working and make it tough,” he mentioned. “We created alternatives — not likely clear-cut probabilities in my view, however sufficient that we might have scored.
“At occasions we might have completed higher. That’s a part of soccer. At occasions we performed by means of them properly, however they had been capable of defend significantly better than once we had been right here a few weeks in the past.”
Arne Slot echoed Van Dijk’s feedback, saying: “The choice he [the referee] made had plenty of impression on the end result tonight.”
The second leg at Anfield is scheduled for Feb. 6. Liverpool play League Two group Accrington Stanley within the FA Cup third spherical on Saturday, whereas Spurs journey to National League facet Tamworth.
