The Suspension of the Premier League Official David Coote has sparked a lot of questions and controversy over the officiating credibility of the PGMOL in the Premier League. David Coote was suspended on Monday after a leaked video of him expressing his antagonism towards Liverpool Football Club and their former Coach Jurgen Klopp. As it stands the PGMOL is undergoing a series of investigations over the issue.
Despite the news of the suspension, fans of Liverpool football club and other teams in the league have been showing strong signs of dissatisfaction with the issue. Hoping they can get more accountability from the PGMOL. Some fans have even sought for other officials who seem not to favor their clubs to be investigated.
David Coote’s Suspension
Two videos were discovered involving David Coote and his friend speaking. Within the video, the man from Nottinghamshire spoke negatively about Liverpool club and Jurgen Klopp. Coote sounded slightly tipsy, becoming aggressive while using cursive slurs. He expressed how unpleasant Liverpool’s Ex-Manager Jurgen Klopp addressed him from a past game. The 42-year-old man referenced a lockdown match involving Liverpool and Burnley. There he claimed that the coach had pissed him off.
He said: “Aside from [Klopp] having a right pop at me when I refereed them against Burnley in lockdown. He accused me of lying and I’ve got no interest in speaking to someone who f***ing arrogant. (James) Milner’s alright. You can see me there with a mask on. Social distancing — 10 metres apart. But my God, German c***, f*** me.” The PGMOL came across the video, dropping a statement on suspending the 42-year-old: “David Coote has been suspended with immediate effect pending a full investigation. No further comments until the process is complete.”
David Coote History Officiating Liverpool
After the video was released, many investigations were scheduled for all the games David Coote officiated in. During Liverpool’s clash against Aston Villa on Saturday evening, Coote was the referee in charge of the game. Leon Bailey who was the last man fouled Mohammed Salah, however, the advantage led to a goal for the Reds. In the end, Leon Bailey failed to be booked for the last-man foul on Salah.
Another game was Liverpool Arsenal in the 2023/24 season. Martin Odegaard had a glaring handball in the box. Coote’s who was in charge of VAR didn’t advise Chris Kavanagh to confirm the foul. Liverpool’s 2-2 draw against Everton in 2020 had a lot of controversy too, as Pickford had a nasty foul on Virgil Van Dijk, that led to an ACL injury. The Everton Keeper failed to receive a booking, while David Coote who was in charge of VAR ignored a possible Red Card review.
Later on in the game, the Reds took the lead scoring the 3rd, but it was cancelled for offside. The Offside looked questionable, as the lines seemed inaccurate. T Another questionable officiating happened outside of Liverpool. Man City was leading Everton 1 nil in an intense game. Soon Rodri had a glaring handball in the box, However, David Coote who was in Charge of the VAR ruled it out. City eventually won the game, and the league that year gapping Liverpool with a single point.
Fans Opinion
The Liverpool fanbase, alongside Arsenal and other teams in the Premier League, have been clamoring for David Coote’s job termination. They’ve also called for the investigation of other referees whose in-game judgment may have seemed biased towards their club. Some fans have even called for the disbanding of the PGMOL by the Premier League. And possible replacement by foreign officiators from Europe to minimize biased ruling.
Although it might seem a bit overboard to the fans, all English officials hailed from a certain county that may be associated with a particular club. A typical example is the likes of Anthony Taylor, and Paul Tierney who hail from Manchester. Although there is no evidence that they supported any club in Manchester. But fans of clubs outside the county have complained about biases when they officiated their games against any of the Manchester clubs. And with Coote’s issue at hand, this will like to push fans to clamor for more accountability from the PGMOL.
Possible Outcome
In the light of the investigation, many possibilities could be the outcome. The worst that could happen is the termination of David Coote’s Job. However, there are high chance that PGMOL might be lenient, considering his actions as just a mistake that shouldn’t have occurred. As a result, ban him from officiating any Liverpool game. A possible apology from him could also follow suit after such a scenario. But the outcome may not satisfy Liverpool fans who felt their club should been swimming in more trophies than unfair rulings.
