Ex-Fifa official hails ‘brilliant’ referee as new Man City controversy emerges
Keith Hackett has praised Michael Oliver’s decision to end the minute’s silence before Man City’s 3-2 FA Cup semi-final defeat to Liverpool early.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, the ex-Fifa and Premier League referee insisted Oliver handled the incident “brilliantly” but it was “unfortunate”.
Just before kick-off at Wembley on Saturday (16 April) a minute’s silence was scheduled to mark the 33rd anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster.
Oliver, 37, took the decision to end it early as a section of the Man City fans failed to respect the silence and broke out into chanting which was followed by booing from Liverpool supporters.
As relayed by the Guardian during the game, a Man City spokesperson “sincerely apologised” for the behaviour of their fans.
As quoted by the Liverpool Echo after his side’s win, Jurgen Klopp insisted the club accepted City’s apology as it has “nothing to do” with the club.
“I thought Michael Oliver handled that brilliantly,” Hackett told Football Insider correspondent Connor Whitley.
“If we all love football it doesn’t matter what team it is, we should be impartial because this was a disaster.
“We’ve seen it marked year after year and it’s just a matter of respect. Football fans should recognise that.
“Micahel Oliver ending early was the right thing to do but it was unfortunate.”
A header from Ibrahima Konate and a brace from Sadio Mane was enough to secure Liverpool victory at Wembley.
They will now face Chelsea next month (14 May) in their first FA Cup final since the 2011-12 season when they lost to the Blues.
In other news, there has been a ‘huge’ FSG update on Mane’s Liverpool future.