Arne Slot breaks silence on red card amid Merseyside derby mayhem

Liverpool manager Arne Slot admitted that he "should have acted differently" when he was sent off after the final whistle of his side's 2-2 draw with Everton on Wednesday night.

A 98th-minute equaliser from centre-back James Tarkowski earned Everton a point from their last-ever Merseyside derby at Goodison Park. In the aftermath of a game littered with contentious decisions, Slot approached referee Michael Oliver in the middle of the pitch.

The Dutch coach exchanged words while shaking the official's hand before he was promptly shown a red card. Slot's assistant Sipke Hulshoff had been sent off for more obvious protestations moments earlier.

Barred from conducting his post-match media duties after receiving a red card, Slot's first public reflection on the controversial events was saved for his press conference on Friday. "The extra five minutes [of added time] ended up being eight minutes and emotions got the better of me," the usually restrained boss admitted.

"If I look back at it, I would love to do it differently. I'm hoping to do it differently next time as well, but what has exactly been said or what has happened, I just told you there's an ongoing process and I don't want to disturb that.

"Many things happened in the end phase but it would not be smart to go into every single incident. I should have acted differently after the game as well but it is an emotional sport."

An official Premier League statement released on Thursday claimed that Slot had been banned for two matches after using "offensive, insulting or abusive language". That line was later deleted and Slot is still awaiting his punishment - which will be dished out by the Football Association, rather than the Premier League, by Monday at the latest.

Much like his two coaches, Curtis Jones was also sent off. Liverpool's homegrown midfielder reacted angrily to Abdoulaye Doucoure's post-match celebrations in front of the travelling Reds fans, charging into his opponent and sparking a mass brawl. Both players were shown a second yellow card.

"I like a lot that he stands up for the team," Slot said of Jones, "but I think there are also other ways for the team and for the fans.

"So I will talk with him about that. But it's the same for me. I should have acted differently after the game as well. But it's an emotional sport and sometimes individuals out of emotion make the wrong decision, and that's definitely what I did."

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