Should Wataru Endo seen red for this challenge on Christian Norgaard? (Photo: Getty)
Brentford manager Thomas Frank concedes his team deserved to lose to Liverpool but was left fuming that Wataru Endo escaped a red card.
Liverpool defeated Brentford 3-0 in their Premier League clash at Anfield on Sunday, with Mohamed Salah and Diogo Jota bagging the goals.
There was a moment of controversy in the second-half while the score was at 1-0 however, when Endo challenged Christian Norgaard for the ball and caught the Bees midfielder with his studs.
The referee did not blow for a foul, but VAR ended up taking four minutes to look at the incident before deciding to play on.
The consensus among pundits was that it was a foul but whether it warranted a card – yellow or red – was up for debate, though Frank believes that based on similar incidents in recent games, the Reds star should have been given his marching orders.
Liverpool won 3-0 they did well but of course this is a key moment in the game and we need to get these key moments right,’ the Bees boss told BeIN Sports post-match.
‘First of all I think the ref should have seen it as a foul on the pitch. I think that back in the day it’s probably not a red card. But in these days with the VAR and the slow mo, I think it’s a clear red.
‘If you look at the Curtis Jones [red card] that Liverpool got against them, [Marcus] Rashford’s against Copenhagen, we had one for Josh Dasilva against Newcastle two years ago.
‘When you have that still footage, plus the force, he’s going over the ball, plus the pictures of clear studs on Nørgaard’s leg with blood and everything, then it’s a red card.
‘So that could have changed it. In the end it didn’t, we lost, we performed well.’
It is the second time in three days that Endo has avoided a red card for a studs up challenge, having made a similar foul to that of Rashford’s in the Europa League against Toulouse.
Brentford defender Ben Mee also expressed his ‘surprise’ with the referee’s decision, saying: ‘It didn’t look like a great tackle in real time.
‘I know Christian Norgaard has got a few nasty cuts just under his knee. It looked a foul in real time. I can’t believe he didn’t give a foul.
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‘Whether it’s a red card, I don’t know, I’ve not seen the replays but it’s one for people to talk about. You don’t want to see players sent off but I was surprised it wasn’t a foul.’
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp didn’t comment on the matter meanwhile, instead hailing Endo’s ‘top performance’ and calling the defensive midfielder ‘super disciplined’
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‘I have pictures of clear studs on Norgaard’s leg with blood and everything!’