Today’s game is going to be a fiery yet emotional rollercoaster between the departing Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola. The biggest game of the season, sees the two heavyweights go head to head, and the winner could likely go all the way and lift the title! For this game, the man tasked with the whistle is Michael Oliver. Oliver is one of the finest referees in town and has been part of the UEFA Elite Group since 2018. But, like every other referee, he too has had his share of questionable and controversial decisions.

Both Klopp and Guardiola have been on the receiving of some of these decisions. In fact, Pep Guardiola once replied in a sarcastic tone and thanked Oliver. The German manager is not far behind and has even received an apology from the Englishman before.

3 decisions by Michael Oliver that cost Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp

The match that made Pep Guardiola yield to sarcasm

Back in 2019, Liverpool had a high-stakes game against Manchester City. Jurgen Klopp’s side emerged victorious 3-1 in a game that involved a lot of decision-making by Oliver. There were two controversial handball claims against Trent Alexander Arnold. Despite VAR’s intervention, nothing went Manchester City’s way. Following the match, Guardiola shook hands with the Liverpool players and approached the officials. He said, “Thank you so much” to Oliver and exited the pitch.

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The 3 decisions that haunted Liverpool at the Emirates

2022/23 was a strange season for Liverpool. Everything seemed to go against them and refereeing decisions certainly did in their encounter against Arsenal. Firstly, Martinelli scored a goal that should have been offside, as per Klopp. But there was no VAR intervention. Secondly, Liverpool had a penalty claim for a handball, which was rejected. Adding salt to the wound, Arsenal received a penalty later on in the game in another controversial decision. Klopp was left upset in the post-match presser and did not hold back.

He said, “In this specific game, just the correct ref decisions would have been helpful, to be honest.” It was later reported that Michael Oliver issued an apology to the German tactician.

When Michael Oliver played second fiddle to Simon Hooper

In the controversial Liverpool-Tottenham game in 2023, Michael Oliver was the 4th official. That game had everything from red cards to controversially disallowed goals. While Simon Hooper, bore the brunt of the criticism, Klopp aimed it at all the officials involved including Oliver, as he said, “I never saw a game like this with the most unfair decisions.”

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Michael Oliver has had his share of controversial calls with the English Premier League’s finest managerial duo. However, all of this pales in comparison to the criticism he received in a 2018 UEFA Champions League encounter. That one proved to be one very costly mistake.

When Gianluigi Buffon slammed Oliver with a ‘garbage bin’ remark!

The 2018 Champions League SF between Real Madrid & Juventus was quite an intense one. Juventus and Real Madrid were 3-3 on aggregate and a nail-biting finish was expected. But a decision by Michael Oliver left the Italian side fuming. He awarded a penalty for a foul on Lucas Vasquez. An enraged Gianluigi Buffon confronted the referee fiercely, only to be immediately sent off with a red card.

Real Madrid scored soon after through the penalty kick and proceeded to the finals. Regarding Michael Oliver, Buffon unhesitantly said, “A human being cannot whistle for an incident so doubtful after a game like that unless you have a garbage bin instead of a heart“. The trouble didn’t end there for the English referee, as his wife was abused on social media. Not a day, the veteran would want to remember.

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