“Shocking Referee Blunders? Julen Lopetegui Exposes Key Mistakes That Cost West Ham Against Liverpool
Liverpool secured a convincing 5-1 victory over West Ham in the Carabao Cup, but West Ham manager Julen Lopetegui believes his team deserved a “clear penalty” in the match.
The Reds kicked off their title defense in style at Anfield, despite falling behind due to an unfortunate own goal by Jarell Quansah. Liverpool quickly responded, with Diogo Jota equalizing before halftime and then scoring again just four minutes into the second half.
Mohamed Salah, coming off the bench, extended Liverpool’s lead. West Ham was reduced to 10 men after Edson Alvarez received a second yellow card, and Cody Gakpo’s late brace sealed the win, setting up a fourth-round clash against Brighton.
However, during the game, West Ham felt they should have been awarded a penalty when Joe Gomez’s arm made contact with the ball. They also argued for a spot-kick after Kostas Tsimikas blocked a cross, and claimed Gakpo was offside leading up to Jota’s equalizer.
Lopetegui, who faces scrutiny from some West Ham fans following his summer appointment, insisted the final score didn’t reflect his team’s performance. He stated, “I don’t think we deserved this result. At many moments, we were even better than them.”
He chose not to dwell on the officiating, noting, “The key decision was the offside goal, which is a mistake that can happen. The second incident was clearly a penalty. Ultimately, we must capitalize on our scoring opportunities.”
Lopetegui added, “To win matches like this, we need to stay competitive. The single mistake we made in the first half cost us dearly. After their third goal and the red card, it became much tougher. The final part of the match was very disappointing for us.”
