Arne Slot was left furious after Lucas Bergvall avoided a second yellow card and went on to score Tottenham’s winning goal in the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final against Liverpool.

The Liverpool manager was visibly upset when Bergvall, already on a booking, brought down Kostas Tsimikas in the lead-up to the goal. However, referee Stuart Attwell chose not to issue a second yellow card, allowing Bergvall to stay on the pitch.

Slot expressed his frustration after the match, saying, “There’s no real debate about it. Decisions can go for or against you, and tonight, one went in Spurs’ favor. The referee’s choice not to give the second yellow had a massive impact just 30 seconds later.”

Before the controversial moment, the game had been evenly matched at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with both sides failing to break the deadlock. Liverpool had a goal disallowed for offside, keeping the scoreline at 0-0.

In the 86th minute, Bergvall capitalized on a moment of brilliance from Dominic Solanke to score his first goal for Spurs. This came moments after Bergvall’s contentious tackle, which left Tsimikas needing treatment off the pitch. With Liverpool temporarily down to 10 men, the Reds’ coaching staff erupted in protest, leading to one member receiving a yellow card. Virgil van Dijk also criticized the officials post-match, saying, “It was obvious it should’ve been a second yellow. That decision changed the game.”