‘Decision to not give Konaté red card is bizarre’: Dyche fumes after derby defeat

Sean Dyche said he was astonished by Craig Pawson’s “incredible” failure to dismiss Liverpool’s Ibrahima Konaté in the Merseyside derby after 10-man Everton were beaten 2-0 at Anfield.

Everton had Ashley Young sent off for two bookable offences in the first half and were eventually breached when VAR spotted a handball by Michael Keane inside his own area. Dyche had no major complaint over the eventual decision to award a penalty, converted by Mohamed Salah, nor Young’s second yellow card. But he was left seething when Konaté escaped a second yellow for a trip on the substitute Beto with the game goalless.

Jürgen Klopp immediately substituted his defender and said he understood the Everton manager’s annoyance. But he added: “We’ve been on the other side of it and we have to accept that [as managers]. It’s really hard to do that in the first moment, but with time you get over it.”

Dyche said of the Konaté incident: “I have no clue about it. I asked the referee and he said he didn’t feel it was a bookable offence. I think a lot of people who were here today would be stunned it was not a second yellow, including their manager who couldn’t wait to get him off. He knows and we know. Fair play to him [Klopp] for his honest view. I don’t want to talk about referees but that one is incredible to me. And I got a yellow card. I don’t know what for. I was just gesticulating like everyone else in the stadium and me and my coaching staff got booked. That is just ridiculous.”

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Dyche added: “I’ve seen the footage back and within a second he’s saying ‘no chance’. He hasn’t given himself any thinking time. I’d be amazed if anyone out there doesn’t think that’s a yellow. That is just bizarre to me. How it’s not a second yellow in the modern game is nearly impossible.”

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While acknowledging Everton’s frustration at Pawson’s performance, Klopp insisted his side were deserved victors having dominated against 11 and 10 men. The Liverpool manager said: “When Ibou didn’t get the second yellow I thought: ‘We don’t give it a chance and take him off.’ I understand, I can imagine, the frustration of Everton and Sean in this moment. Absolutely. Yes it was 0-0 and would have been 10 v 10 but I thought we were the better side. Would we have won? I don’t know, we will never find out. Would Everton have changed anything or not? We don’t know. Would they have been a bit more offensive or not? That’s all hypothetical obviously. So 2-0 and we deserved the three points. I think there is no doubt.”