Simon Hooper to referee Liverpool after leaving Man City furious

The referee was at the centre of yet more Premier League controversy ahead of taking charge of Liverpool's next match

11:59, 04 Dec 2023

Referee Simon Hooper makes a decision during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur at Etihad Stadium on December 03, 2023(Image: (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images))

Simon Hooper will take charge of Liverpool's match against Sheffield United on Wednesday - only days after sparking more controversy with a decision at the end of Manchester City's draw with Tottenham.

A tightly-contested affair at the Etihad Stadium ended 3-3 on Sunday, ending with Dejan Kulusevski's shock 90th-minute equaliser for Ange Postecoglou's side.

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However Pep Guardiola and his players were outraged that they were not handed the opportunity to retake the lead in injury time, all down to a mistake from the official.

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When looking to break, Erling Haaland was felled near the halfway line. He quickly rose to his feet with Hooper waving play-on, however once the striker had threaded a pass through to Jack Grealish - who was onside and one-on-one with the goalkeeper - the whistle was bizarrely blown to halt play.

Haaland was most incensed, going off on a foul-mouthed rant at full-time before storming down the tunnel to post, "Wtf," on X, formerly known as Twitter. Home supporters were also angered as boos rang around the Etihad at full-time.

Liverpool will have had no complaints as it allowed them to cling onto second place after their own thriller at Anfield, however it will heap pressure on the Wiltshire-based referee ahead of his next gig in charge of the Reds' midweek fixture.

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But the error is being put down to human error and therefore Hooper is not being stood down for the next round of matches. It also marks the first time Hooper officiates for the Reds since the controversial loss at Tottenham in September.

Even though the costly error that saw Luis Diaz's legitimate goal struck off was made predominantly by VAR Darren England, the on-field referee made calls against Liverpool to send Curtis Jones and Diogo Jota off en route to defeat.

Jurgen Klopp's men travel to Bramall Lane to face Sheffield United, who are bottom of the league and expected to sack manager Paul Heckingbottom on Monday.