Kenny Dalglish was left fuming after nine-man Liverpool were beaten 4-0 by Spurs after Charlie Adam and Martin Skrtel were sent off either side of half-time.
Dalglish has criticised refereeing decisions throughout the season so far and while he was upset with Lee Probert’s officiating he opted to keep mum on the subject this time around.
“It’s better to just leave it” said Dalglish “We will just stick to (talking about) what we can dictate. We cannot dictate interpretation (of the rules) in any way shape or form. It’s best left unsaid because it takes away from a magnificent performance by Tottenham.”
Probert booked four Liverpool players in the first half including Adam who saw red for his second within 28 minutes. By the time of Adam’s dismissal, Tottenham were already one up through a terrific strike from Modric that Reina had no chance with.
Liverpool thought they had equalised against the run of play whenh Luis Suarez tapped home after a defensive mix-up. But the linesman ruled the Uruguayan was offside when he picked up the ball from Andy Carroll.
Liverpool’s worries grew when Daniel Agger was forced off with a chest problem. He was replaced by debutant Sebastian Coates.
And when Adam caught Parker in the leg with his stubs up, Probert had no option but to worsen the Reds’ afternoon. The tide continued in Tottenham’s favour with Skrtel, Coates and Suarez all booked.
Dalglish confronted Probert at half-time to vent his anger at the officials.
Even with only 10 men on the pitch, Liverpool still had a chance to get back into the game in the second half. That chance vanished when Skrtel recklessly went through the back of Bale, earning him a second yellow.
As with Adam red card, Liverpool’s two cards were the result of two two needless challenges by players who had already been booked. You have to be smart and realize that you cannot make those types of tackles, especially when the referee is booking anything in a Liverpool shirt.
Within three minutes of the Skrtel red card, Defoe had doubled Spurs lead and the match was over.
All in all it was another poor performance by Liverpool. After starting the season with two wins and a draw, Liverpool have failed to pick up a point this month. Suddenly the Wolves match at home next weekend becomes a must-win game if Liverpool is to salvage anything from this month.
What did you think of Liverpool’s performance today?
