Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has been fined £45,000 by the FA for comments he made about the referee after a game at West Ham earlier this month.
In the wake of the 1-1 draw, Klopp made comments which implied referee Kevin Friend made decisions later in the game which were influenced by an apparent mistake in the first half.
Sadio Mane had given Liverpool a 22nd-minute lead, and replays subsequently showed James Milner was offside during the build-up.
Klopp was of the opinion his team did not get many decisions after the interval and said to Sky Sports: “We had good moments, coming through the channels and scored the goal, which I’ve now been told is offside.
“This explains a little bit the second half, because I think the referee knew at half-time..
“He knew it for sure at half-time, and then you saw a lot of strange situations. They were not decisive but just rhythm breakers. That obviously didn’t help us.
“If I’ve made a mistake in the first half, I don’t want to open the gap even more as a human being.”
He was subsequently charged by the FA and a statement on Thursday said: “Jurgen Klopp has been fined £45,000 after accepting an FA charge for comments made following Liverpool’s league game against West Ham United on 4 February 2019.
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“His comments made during a post-match interview breached FA Rule E3(1), as they questioned the integrity of the match referee and/or implied bias.”