Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has been given a two-match touchline suspension by the Football Association.

The ban will see Klopp miss the Reds‘ final home game of the season against Aston Villa, with the second game suspended until the end of next season.

The ban comes due to comments made about referee Paul Tierney, where Klopp suggested the official had an agenda against Liverpool after their 4-3 win over Tottenham last month.

It means the German will miss the farewell match for first team stars Roberto Firmino, James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, with the quartet to say goodbye to Anfield ahead of the expiry of their contracts. The match is also of vast importance with Liverpool still competing for a spot in the Champions League next season, needing to win their final two matches and hope for a slip up from Manchester United or Newcastle.

In a statement, the FA said: Jurgen Klopp has been suspended from the touchline for two matches and fined £75,000 following media comments that he made after Liverpool’s Premier League game against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday 30 April 2023. The first match of the manager’s touchline ban is effective immediately and the second is suspended until the end of the 2023/24 season on the condition that he does not commit any further breaches of FA Rule E3 in the meantime.

Jurgen Klopp admitted that his comments regarding the match referee during post-match media interviews constitute improper conduct as they imply bias, question the integrity of the referee, are personal, offensive, and bring the game into disrepute. An independent Regulatory Commission imposed these sanctions following a subsequent hearing. Due to the second match being suspended, Klopp will return for the final game of the season, but it’s away to the already-relegated Southampton.

The comments came at the end of a dramatic 4-3 win over Spurs on April 30, with the London side scoring an equaliser in stoppage time from 3-0 down, only for Liverpool to then score a winner through Diogo Jota. Speaking post-match, Klopp said: How they can give a foul on Mohamed Salah [before Spurs’ third goal]. We have our history with [Paul] Tierney, I really don’t know what he has against us, he has said there is no problems but that cannot be true.

How he looks at me, I don’t understand it. In England nobody has to clarify these situations, it’s really tricky and hard to understand. My celebration was unnecessary, which is fair but what he said to me when he gave me the yellow card is not okay. Since the punishment was handed out, Klopp has publicly apologised.

A statement read: I want to start this submission with the most important sentiment I must express; I am sorry. I am sorry for my reaction in that immediate moment when I ran towards the fourth official, Mr Brooks and I fully accepted a caution was justified. I accepted that then and I accept now that a yellow card was correct.

Equally I am sorry for some of the tone and content of my post-match interview. Although it was not my intention I accept now it appears that I was questioning Mr Tierney’s integrity. I take ownership of this. On reflection, the words I used were inappropriate.

Both of these incidents were driven by emotion. I was overly emotional at some of the decisions made, which then led to frustration and a feeling of unfairness. I carried that emotion into the mandated and time sensitive post-match press commitments.

I do ask that you look at the comments I made in the following context; we are, as Managers, contractually required to make ourselves available in a timely fashion. This doesn’t readily allow for a more measured approach. Also, English is not my primary language and at times what I mean to say and how I say it can conflict.

For the avoidance of doubt, I was trying to express how I felt whilst dealing with the frustration I was feeling around a number of decisions made during the game. It was about feelings and emotions. To be absolutely clear, I know that Mr. Tierney, along with all other officials, do their work without any pre-conceived bias or prejudice.

Although not an excuse, I believe we have made up a high percentage of Mr Tierney’s matches this season? Something in the region of 20% of the matches he has officiated have involved my team. I do not offer this as a defence, rather it is an observation and could be a reason for both the build-up of frustration governed by an inadvertent accumulation of incidents over an extended period.

Hopefully you saw in my very next press conference (Tuesday 2nd May, 2023) I sought to clarify and correct any wrong conclusions drawn from the words I used in the interview on Sky Sports, which took place matter minutes after a tumultuous and highly dramatic game ended.