Virgil van Dijk told the referee in Liverpool versus Tottenham that he “made a mistake” as Spurs’ goalscorer Lucas Bergvall should have been sent off in a “quite obvious” decision.
The Reds’ 24-game unbeaten streak was broken when Spurs defeated them in the League Cup on January 8. It could well have ended 0-0 until midfielder Bergvall rifled into the bottom corner in the 86th minute to give Tottenham the lead in the tie.
But that in itself was a moment of controversy, as Bergvall was on a booking from earlier in the game, before uprooting Kostas Tsimikas not long before scoring the winner in the first leg of the semi-final.
Liverpool captain Van Dijk has since revealed he told the referee the Swede should not have remained on the pitch.
“I think it was quite obvious it was going to be a second yellow [for Bergvall]. It was pretty clear. And a minute later he scores the winner … a coincidence,” Van Dijk said.
“He [the referee] made a mistake in my opinion and I told him that. He thinks he didn’t but it was quite obvious and everyone on the sidelines knew it was supposed to be a yellow.
“There’s a linesman there, a fourth official there, there’s VAR, a referee and he doesn’t get a second yellow. I’m not saying this is the reason why we lost tonight but it was a big moment in the game.”
MORE ON LIVERPOOL FROM F365:
👉 Liverpool: ‘Bang ordinary’ star blasted with FSG urged to ‘take £20m’; PL doesn’t ‘hinge on’ transfer
👉 Liverpool fans say ‘let him go’ on Trent as Reds already have ‘defensive upgrade’
👉 ‘Obsessed’ Liverpool legend Carragher hits back at Salah with perfect response to eight-word jibe
Bergvall’s first yellow, however, looked to be a soft one, as when he challenged Luis Diaz on the touchline, he looked to make very minimal, if any, contact, so may have been hard done by had he been dismissed.
In any case, his goal puts Tottenham 1-0 up going into the second leg, where they will travel to Anfield, a ground at which Liverpool have lost just once so far this season.
The Reds must do better than just not losing if they are to progress, though.
READ MORE: ‘Remorseless’ Liverpool star ‘spoon-fed’ by Klopp blasted for ‘outrageous statement’