Reunion with Referee Simon Hooper Spells Trouble for Klopp in Liverpool’s Match Against Aston Villa
As Jurgen Klopp prepares for his final away game as Liverpool manager, he must face the unsettling prospect of being officiated by referee Simon Hooper once again. Hooper, who will be overseeing the clash with Aston Villa on Monday, has a history with Klopp that the German will not soon forget.
One particular fixture stands out in their shared past – the match against Tottenham earlier this season. It was during this game that Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz were controversially sent off, and a catastrophic VAR error took place. Hooper was the referee that day, leaving a bitter taste in Klopp’s mouth.
Notably, Hooper was also present as the fourth official in Liverpool’s defeat against Everton. In a recent interview, Klopp made sure to mention the official by name, expressing his dissatisfaction with the previous encounters.
It seems fate has conspired to bring these two together once again for Klopp’s final away match. Hooper will be joined by assistants Adrian Holmes and Tim Wood, with Tim Robinson as the fourth official. Chris Kavanagh will be in charge of VAR, assisted by Mark Scholes.
This will be the fifth time Hooper has officiated a Liverpool match this season, with the Reds only managing to secure two wins out of those encounters. Interestingly, in all of Hooper’s previous games involving Liverpool, he has never awarded a penalty in favor of Klopp’s side. However, he has awarded one against them.
It has been a challenging season for Hooper, to say the least. He faced criticism for an “officiating mistake” during Manchester City’s draw with Tottenham earlier in the campaign. With this in mind, Liverpool fans can only hope for a controversy-free match in Klopp’s penultimate game as manager.
Furthermore, Klopp will need to exercise caution in his interactions with Hooper, as a yellow card could result in a ban that would prevent him from bidding farewell to Anfield in his final match. It remains to be seen how this reunion will unfold, but one thing is certain – tensions will be running high on Monday.