Sign up to FREE email alerts from Football London - West Ham Subscribe Thank you for subscribing See our privacy notice Invalid Email

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp could face a ban from the Football Association after questioning referee Kevin Friend's ability to perform his duties.

Despite his anger at decisions in the second half, the German saw his side benefit from an incorrect call to go ahead early in the game as Sadio Mane scored a goal that was set up by James Milner.

The Englishman had been in an offside position when the ball was played through only for the linesman to fail to spot the infringement.

According to Klopp, that error lead to the officials acting with prejudice against his side after the break.

In his post-match interview with Sky Sports, the former Borussia Dortmund boss cast aspersions over Friend and his colleagues.

"We had good moments and we score the goal which was offside," said the two-time Bundesliga winner.

"The referee must know that at half-time, it explains the second half because I think the referee knew and you saw there were a lot of strange situations, not decisive, just rhythm breakers.

"There were so many situations where it was 50-50 or 60-40 - a free kick for the other team in a counter-pressing situation as Naby [Keita] wins the ball. That's not a foul."

(Image: Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

Klopp claimed that Friend had sought to balance out the earlier error.

"As a human being I know if I make a big mistake in the first half," he said. "I don't want to open the gap even more."

The FA could act on his comments if they are found to be in breach of the standards expected by the governing body.

Pep Guardiola received a warning for claiming referee Anthony Taylor did not give certain decisions in order to avoid making mistakes in October 2018.

Newcastle United boss Rafael Benitez was fined in November for comments about officials, although he questioned the decision given the lesser sanction handed out to the Manchester City manager.

Arsene Wenger and Jose Mourinho were both banned during their Premier League careers for outbursts against referees.

Klopp could also be seen speaking to officials on the pitch following Liverpool's 1-1 draw with West Ham, although he played down the incident after the game.

Keep up to date with the latest news, features and exclusives from football.london via the free football.london app for iPhone and Android .

Available to download from the App Store and Google Play .