Chelsea head coach Mauricio Pochettino has appealed to Carabao Cup final referee Chris Kavanagh to make fair decisions in Sunday’s decider against Liverpool.
The Blues boss made the remarks ahead of another meeting with the Reds after the West London side were appalled by Paul Tierney’s calls when both sides met in the Premier League on January 31.
Chelsea felt they were denied two clear penalties at Anfield after Virgil van Dijk’s seeming fouls on Conor Gallagher and Christopher Nkunku, while several subjective decisions went the way of Liverpool.
The encounter happened only days after Jurgen Klopp announced he would be leaving the club he joined in 2016, leaving Pochettino and his players frustrated at the perceived favoritism of the home side in the 4-1 loss on Merseyside.
“Maybe there are people that want to celebrate with Liverpool as he is leaving,” Pochettino said via the Liverpool Echo. “What we need to be sure is that we are going to compete and for the referees to be fair in every single decision.
“When we played against Liverpool in Liverpool, I think not one key decision was for us. Two penalties were not given. Duels, 50-50s were always for the other colour, always red. I want to be treated in a fair way.
“I am the first to say Liverpool are amazing, and Klopp is one of the best coaches in the world but after my last experience playing there, what I want at Wembley is to go there and for nobody to feel the pressure, to play the game and the best will win. Not to feel the pressure, [from] people around.”
Leave a Reply