Arne Slot: Referee's Decision Has An Impact On Defeat Tottenham

Arne Slot expressed his frustration with the referee's leadership in the match between Tottenham vs Liverpool (Instagram/@liverpoolfc).

Tottenham Hotspur beat Liverpool in the first leg of the Carabao Cup semifinals, Thursday, January 9, 2025, early morning WIB.

Lucas Bergvall's single goal put the Reds in a difficult situation due to a one-goal deficit in the aggregate.

The goal was Bergvall's first for Spurs. The 18-year-old Swedish player fired an incredible hard shot without being able to stop Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson in the 86th minute.

The result stopped Spurs' four consecutive games without a win (three defeats and one draw) in all competitions during the storm of injury that was over.

Liverpool, who beat Chelsea to win last season's 10th Premier League Cup, were not in their best form when their 24-match unbeaten streak in all competitions ended.

Mereka memang memiliki alasan yang sah untuk mengeluh karena Bergvall, yang telah mendapat kartu kuning, beruntung lolos dari kartu kuning kedua usai melakukan pelanggaran terhadap Kostas Tsimikas beberapa saat ia mencetak gol kemenangan.

"He should have left, it was a big moment," Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk said after the game.

The negative result against Spurs was Liverpool's second defeat this season in all competitions.

Seeing that the deficit is not far away plus performance is still consistent, it's no wonder Arne Slot still feels confident that he can turn things around in the second leg of the Carabao Cup semifinal at Anfield on February 7, 2025.

However, Arne Slot remains upset with referee Stuart Attwell's leadership who did not give Bergvall a red card.

"I'm more interested in him to explain why he didn't give Bergvall a second yellow card."

"The decision he (the referee) made had a big impact on the results (of defeat) tonight," said the Dutch coach after the match.

Tottenham had a better chance in the first half with Radu Dragusin' initial effort pushed over by Alisson. Solange then failed to take advantage of Son Heung-min's cross.

The visitors also did not remain silent. Mohamed Salah, who, as usual, fired one shot that was still wide.

Then, there was also an opportunity from Cody Gakpo who had made Antonin Kinsky panic.

Alisson almost made the blunder that put Tottenham ahead shortly after halftime.

He bought time to control the ball and Bergvall grabbed the ball which then passed the ball into Pedro Porro. Luckily, Porro's shot was blocked by Virgil van Dijk.

Liverpool almost took the lead if Trent Alexander-Arnold's shot, who came on as a substitute, was not swept away by Dragusin on the line.

The hosts did not want to just give up and Bergvall made the supporters cheered for the clinical completion after Solanke's hard work.

Tottenham have only won three wins in their last 14 games in all competitions this season.

A storm of injury destroyed Ange Postecoglou's squad. Midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur also had to be carried off the field against Liverpool after falling at the start of the match. This situation made Spurs' treatment room even more crowded.

Meanwhile, Liverpool won 6-3 at Tottenham's headquarters in the Premier League before Christmas, but they looked lethargic against the same team in the Carabao Cup despite dominating possession.

It was a sweet revenge for Tottenham, in which Bergvall showed why he was considered so high - to be the team's youngest goalscorer in the Premier League Cup since Gareth Bale in 2007.

Postecoglou claims earlier this season that he has always won trophies in his second season at a club. However, recent results have added pressure to the Australian coach.

Fans sang his name at the end of the game seeing the first trophy since the 2008 English League Cup getting closer, although there is still a lot of work to be done.