Liverpool boss Rodgers fined for referee comments

The Northern Irishman confirmed he would not appeal the FA misconduct charge, and has subsequently been reprimanded for remarks that “question the integrity of the referee”

Brendan Rodgers has been fined £8,000 (€9,700) for comments made following Liverpool’s 2-1 defeat at Manchester City on December 26.

The 40-year-old confirmed he would not appeal a Football Association misconduct charge, and has subsequently been reprimanded for remarks that “question the integrity of the referee”.

Rodgers was left incensed at the end of the game at the Etihad Stadium after a series of decisions that went against his side, including Raheem Sterling having a goal ruled out for offside despite  being in an onside position, while he also felt Luis Suarez should have had a penalty late in the match.

The Northern Irishman labelled the performance of the officials as “horrendous”, while he also questioned the decision to appoint Bolton-born referee Lee Mason for the fixture, stating: “Hopefully we won’t have a Greater Manchester referee with Liverpool-Manchester games in future.”

A statement on the FA’s website read: “Following an Independent Regulatory Commission hearing today, Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has been fined £8,000 and warned as to his future conduct after he admitted an FA misconduct charge.

“Rodgers was charged for a breach of FA Rule E3 in that his post-match comments following Liverpool’s game at Manchester City on 26 December 2013 constituted improper conduct in that they called into question the integrity of the match referee, and/or implied that the match referee was motivated by bias; and/or brought the game into disrepute; and/or amounted to a failure to act in the best interests of the game.”

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