Hodgson on disappointing 2-1 loss to Liverpool (Full Presser)
Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson makes sure to let everyone know exactly how he's feeling following that disappointing 2-1 loss to Liverpool
Transcript
00:00 Yes, Judd Swindell.
00:02 After an injury, Jürgen was just in a minute there.
00:05 Not for you today, he said, so much for you to be proud of that performance,
00:09 but Jordan's red card kind of changed the whole game?
00:12 Well, it did.
00:14 I mean, it's nice to know that there are still enough serious football people out there
00:19 to judge games on the merit that it has to be judged on.
00:23 I mean, the first thing I'd like to say before I start is I'll answer your questions,
00:28 I'll answer them honestly.
00:30 But I don't want you discussing my mood or how I am.
00:35 You know, you can do what you like with what I say,
00:38 but don't you start saying, oh, he looked upset, he looked exasperated.
00:42 You know, do me a favour.
00:44 You know, I'm honest with you and fair with you, so you be fair there.
00:49 I thought that up to the sending off, which I totally disagree with,
00:56 in every respect, I'm really disappointed that I've just sent to Ray Horne,
01:02 a friend of mine from Liverpool, Virgil van Dijk,
01:05 who kicked the ball against Jordan to get him the first yellow card.
01:08 And I thought the second yellow card was a tackle.
01:11 Whether it was a foul or not, I wouldn't want to swear to,
01:15 but I didn't think it was a yellow card.
01:17 So to force us to play with 10 men for the last 15 plus minutes of the game,
01:23 which up to that point I thought we dealt with extremely well,
01:26 was a really, really harsh outcome.
01:31 And certainly not worthy of what the team had produced up to that point.
01:36 You're unhappy with the sending off.
01:38 What about the two penalty decisions, one was a return, one was a play-off?
01:42 Well, it's two referees, isn't it?
01:44 Which referee do you want to believe?
01:46 Are you going to believe the referee on the field who gave one and not the other?
01:50 Or are you going to believe the referee in VAR who didn't give one and didn't give the other?
01:54 I mean, I suppose I could if I was being fatalistic and had some perspective on it all,
02:01 which I don't really have at the moment,
02:03 to say, well, at least we got one penalty of the ones that were out there to get.
02:08 And we did score it and it did give us the lead.
02:11 Is Jordan himself as upset, disappointed as you are with that sending off?
02:16 You would not believe how upset and disappointed the players are.
02:21 But I'm sure some of you have played football in your career,
02:26 and I'm sure you know how it is sometimes to play a game of football where you really do well,
02:31 you really exceed, to some extent, expectations and what people are entitled to expect of you to perform.
02:40 And then at the end of it, due to the sort of circumstances which control this game,
02:45 you end up losing it.
02:47 There is no way to describe those feelings, unfortunately.
02:50 And what's more, if you say to me, well, as a coach, what are you going to do about it?
02:55 If I was to be brutal, I'd say, I can't do much about it.
02:58 I can say the right things.
03:00 I can praise them for their performance today.
03:03 I can say you were so unlucky.
03:05 I can blame the referee.
03:07 I can blame lots of things.
03:08 But the bottom line is, a game where I thought, after 75 minutes,
03:14 we were looking likely to win 1-0, we've lost 2-1.
03:18 And in a week or two's time, I'll be doing a press conference where you'll be telling me we've lost 5 out of 6,
03:24 or 6 out of 7, or 7 out of 8.
03:28 Because no one will refer back and say, yeah, but what about that Liverpool game?
03:32 You should have had three points on that.
03:34 You don't do that.
03:35 We tend to do it, but it doesn't help.
03:38 OK. That's it.
03:40 Can I ask you about the injuries?
03:44 Yeah, we can't afford injuries.
03:48 With the squad, we have Edouard, we don't know, it's an knee injury.
03:52 A calf injury to Johnson.
03:54 A hamstring injury to Lerma.
03:57 A suspension for Jordan Ayoub.
04:02 Michael Alise should be OK.
04:04 I doubt whether Ezi will be fit.
04:06 I doubt whether Tyric Mitchell will be fit.
04:09 And we'll put a team out with the players that are left.
04:12 After you haven't tested him, that's obviously going to be a big one for him.
04:15 One penalty is a penalty really well, so it's a big one for him.
04:19 Hmm.
04:21 I don't particularly want to comment on individual players' performances.
04:27 Just going on what you said to...
04:31 You were talking about on the TV earlier on.
04:33 You sounded a little bit disillusioned.
04:35 Is that accurate?
04:38 If I did, and you want to describe my mood at the moment as disillusioned,
04:43 you've probably chosen the right word, yes, I'm disillusioned.
04:46 With the game generally, or just that game?
04:51 Well, this game really was pretty much an amalgam of what the game is these days.
04:57 Because you never know going into the game whether you're going to give a good performance.
05:01 And in the 91st minute, the ref is going to give a penalty or a VAR,
05:05 because the ball is adjudged to strike someone's hand,
05:08 whose hand has been in an unnatural position, you lose on a penalty.
05:11 That's the reality of our situation today.
05:14 All the coaches I speak with, they don't think the penalty will actually be given,
05:19 but that's what referees do.
05:21 And the same way with the setting off.
05:23 Why do we get a setting off?
05:24 Because a player couldn't get away quick enough before the opponent kicked the ball against him.
05:28 So he's wasting time.
05:31 Well, you tell me if that's right.
05:34 If you can really sit there and say, "No, we agree with you."
05:37 Well, don't say you're disillusioned.
05:38 You should be disillusioned too.
05:40 Any other questions?
05:44 No? OK. Thank you.
05:47 Good.
05:48 Just got myself another bollock in from Girona.
05:51 It's quite lovely stuff.
05:53 Thank you.
05:56 (coughing)