David Coote: PGMOL referee suspended over alleged video against Liverpool and Jürgen Klopp

Premier League referee David Coote has been suspended after a video circulated on social media in which he allegedly made derogatory comments about Liverpool and the club’s former manager Jurgen Klopp.

According to the PGMOL referee body, the ban comes into effect with immediate effect and a full investigation is still pending.

The video, widely shared on social media, has not been verified by the BBC. It is unclear when it was filmed or if it is authentic.

A source told the BBC that PGMOL’s investigation considered the video to be genuine.

Coote, 42, took charge of Liverpool’s 2-0 win over Aston Villa on Saturday. He is one of the Premier League’s most experienced officials and has been officiating games in the top flight since 2018.

The video shared appears to refer to a Premier League game between Liverpool and Burnley that Coote refereed in July 2020 and which ended 1-1.

Klopp criticized Coote after the game, saying the referee had failed to award foul after foul on Liverpool’s players.

In the video, the man said to be Coote says that Klopp “had a real hit on me when I beat them against Burnley in lockdown”. He describes Klopp as arrogant and insults him several times.

The video shows him with another man and lasts just over a minute. The circumstances under which the video was created are unclear.

PGMOL says it will have no further comment on the case until the investigation is complete.

BBC Sport has been told that Liverpool are aware of the video but are not commenting at this time.

English Football League chairman Rick Parry told BBC Sport on Monday: “PGMOL is looking into it – they have suspended him – they have acted quickly and will make sure they deal with it thoroughly and professionally.”

Referees are obliged to inform PGMOL about the club they support.

Coote, from Nottingham, is registered as a Notts County fan and therefore cannot referee County or Nottingham Forest games.