Arne Slot says Marc Guehi should have been sent off for Man City against Liverpool

Liverpool manager Arne Slot has voiced his frustration over the officiating in his side’s 2-1 home defeat to Manchester City, insisting that Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi should have been dismissed for a shirt pull on Mohamed Salah.

The incident occurred in the second half at Anfield when Guehi hauled back the Egyptian forward, an offence that brought only a yellow card from referee Michael Oliver. Slot, speaking moments after the final whistle, argued that the foul met the criteria for a red card and highlighted a perceived inconsistency after Dominik Szoboszlai was sent off late on for an almost identical infringement on Erling Haaland.

“When you asked me, what do you think about the decision, I thought, what do you mean?” Slot began. “Do you mean the disallowed goal at City, the header from us? Do you mean the penalty they got in the away game against us? Do you mean the clear red card on Mo Salah in the second half? Do you mean the penalty they got in the second half? Do you mean this decision?”

The Dutch coach continued by contrasting Szoboszlai’s straight red with Guehi’s caution. “I can live with the fact, although I don’t like it, that the referee follows the rule book and Dominic makes a foul on Haaland in that last situation, which is a clear shirt pull, and he was through to goal, so he would have scored. So that’s a red card, and I think the Sunderland manager is really happy that he gives the red card.

“So that’s the rule book, and you follow the rule book. And if you follow the rule book, and you have a clear shirt pull from Guehi on Mo Salah, who for eight years is scoring that goal every single time and that is not a red card then there is more of my frustration, but I can live with the red card.”

Slot stopped short of calling for wholesale rule changes, but urged greater consistency in their application. “If you like football, you say leave it as it is, it’s a goal, it’s good for them, it’s good for everyone, but if you’re the Sunderland manager, you prefer to see a red card, and that’s the rule, and follow the rules is all we ask.”

City’s comeback victory, sealed after Liverpool had taken an early lead, tightens the title race and leaves Slot ruing a series of marginal calls that he believes went against his team across the two meetings with the champions this season.