Jurgen Klopp Blasts Linesman over Alberto Moreno Goal, Slams Liverpool Players

Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp said Alberto Moreno was denied the "goal of the month" against Newcastle, but admitted his team were undeserving in their 2-0 defeat at St James' Park. 

The Spanish left-back finished with style as he lobbed the ball into the far corner of the net, but the assistant referee incorrectly raised his flag for offside, denying Liverpool an equaliser.

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LFC TV (h/t Alex Sharp of the MailOnline) quoted Klopp speaking about the "clear goal," but also admitting he was hurt by the nature of the performance from his side [NSFW Warning].

"

It was a clear goal, I saw it. No problem. When the linesman sees this goal he won't feel good. It was a brilliant goal, goal of the month.

The first goal is a Christmas present. Then we made our own goal, but because we weren't good enough today, the linesman thought "well, you don't make world class goals if you play this s---!"'

The second goal (from Georginio Wijnaldum), I'm not interested in. It's a counter attack, that's normal. We have to take this game, and think about why it happened.

"

Klopp's post-match press conference was shared on YouTube:

Liverpool were poor on Sunday and had their great run of form ended by the Magpies. Georginio Wijnaldum was central to the defeat, as the winger saw his deflected shot cannon in off Martin Skrtel, and he wrapped up the points with a sumptuous finish late in the game.

Moreno's effort should have stood, as proved by TV replays, but the Reds were far from the performance value of recent weeks, which has seen them claim wins at Chelsea, Manchester City and Southampton.

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Ex-Liverpool and Newcastle midfielder Dietmar Hamann agreed with Klopp's appraisal on Sky Sports (h/t Sharp,) but debated whether Moreno meant to finish the ball, or simply cross into the centre:

"

I agree with Rob Elliot, I think they stop. He is onside, there's no doubt about it. He's (the linesman) not quite in line and gets it wrong but I agree with Rob Elliot and he still wants to make the save in the end but Janmaat kind of stopped and puts his arm up.

I think Moreno actually wanted to square the ball for Origi in the middle.

It's a fantastic finish but I don't think he meant it and he may have seen the flag up as well. Yes, he's a little bit unlucky but if the flag stayed down, would he have scored? We don't know.

"

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The defeat was Liverpool's second in four matches, and it sees the Anfield giants drop to fifth in the Premier League form guide. Klopp's team missed a great chance to close the gap on the top-four sides in the league on Sunday, after City and Manchester United dropped points, and the coach will rue the timing of such a mediocre performance. 

The excitement has been palpable on Merseyside after a set of noteworthy victories of late, but the Reds need to find consistent performances.

Philippe Coutinho, who was ruled out with a hamstring problem, per Ian Doyle of the Liverpool Echo, was dearly missed, and Klopp will be hoping the Brazilian is back in his starting XI before long.