Everton, Liverpool, and their coach Arne Slot have been charged by the Football Association (FA) after a heated ending to Wednesday’s Merseyside derby at Goodison Park.
The FA says both clubs failed to control their players, who acted in an improper and/or provocative way after the match ended.
Liverpool’s head coach, Slot, is also accused of behaving in an improper way and using insulting or abusive words towards referee Michael Oliver and one of his assistants, which led to him being shown a red card.
Slot’s assistant, Sipke Hulshoff, was also sent off and faces similar charges for his actions before and after his dismissal.
The clubs, Slot, and Hulshoff have until Wednesday, 19 February, to respond to the charges.
What Happened?
After the match ended, Liverpool and Everton players clashed. The incident began when Everton’s James Tarkowski scored a last-minute equalizer in the 98th minute, which was confirmed after a VAR check.
Liverpool players believed the goal should not have counted because Everton’s striker Beto had pushed their defender, Ibrahima Konate, before the goal.
After the final whistle, Everton’s Abdoulaye Doucoure celebrated in front of Liverpool fans, which led to a confrontation with Liverpool’s Curtis Jones. Both players received second yellow cards and were sent off.
Slot and Hulshoff then approached the referee, which led to them being shown red cards as well.
Later, Slot admitted in a press conference that he let his emotions take over and should have reacted differently.
Current Situation
The draw helped Liverpool stay seven points clear at the top of the Premier League table. Meanwhile, Everton moved up to 15th place, staying 10 points away from the relegation zone.
Slot is expected to be on the sidelines for Liverpool’s next match against Wolves at Anfield on Sunday.
Initially, the Premier League website reported that Slot would be banned for two matches for using offensive language, but the post was later removed, as it was a mistake caused by human error.
