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View image in fullscreenReferee David Coote sacked after Klopp comments and second video allegationsHe was suspended over foul-mouthed Klopp remarksVideo allegedly showed him snorting white powder

The Premier League referee David Coote has been sacked after videos revealed him making foul-mouthed comments about Jürgen Klopp and Liverpool and allegedly showed him sniffing what appeared to be white powder.

Professional Game Match Officials Ltd said within hours of the first video’s emergence on 11 November that Coote had been suspended pending an investigation and on Monday it said his position had been deemed untenable.

Coote was also removed from duty at the time by Uefa and is being separately investigated the Football Association over his comments about Klopp.

The FA has also been investigating allegations that Coote discussed giving a yellow card before a game.

The allegations centre on an exchange of messages before and after Coote refereed the Championship game between Leeds and West Brom in October 2019, in which he booked the Leeds defender Ezgjan Alioski.

Coote described those allegations as “false and defamatory”, saying: “Whatever issues I may have had in my personal life they have never affected my decision-making on the field.”

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In a statement PGMOL said on Monday: “Following the conclusion of a thorough investigation into David Coote’s conduct, his employment with PGMOL has been terminated today with immediate effect.

David Coote has a right to appeal the decision to terminate his employment.”

The video allegedly showing Coote sniffing what appeared to be white powder was published by the Sun two days after his comments about Klopp came to light.

Coote also makes reference to Klopp’s nationality and describes a performance by Liverpool in unflattering terms.

The second video was said by the Sun to date from this summer’s European Championship, at which Coote was an official.

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Coote refereed his first Premier League game in 2018 and took charge of the 2023 Carabao Cup final.

He and the other man shown in the first video also imply that they are breaching Covid regulations in sitting almost shoulder to shoulder, Coote saying sarcastically: “We’re 2 metres apart.”

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