The yellow card incident that saw referee David Coote fall into further trouble has resurfaced once again, more than five years after it first happened.
Referee Coote is being investigated by the Football Association following allegations he discussed showing a player a yellow card before refereeing in a game.
In the match in question, Leeds faced West Brom in the Championship in October 2019, with then defender Ezgjan Alioski booked in the 18th minute.
The North Macedonia international launched himself to challenge Darnell Furlong, sliding down the pitch at an out-of-control pace and catching the Baggies back to rightly earn a caution.
However, a report from The Sun suggests Coote allegedly messaged a ‘friend’ to hint that Leeds player Alioski would be booked during the clash at Elland Road.
It is also stated in the report that Coote messaged his friend again the day after the match to say: “What a day it was yesterday.” I hope you supported what we discussed.
Ezgjan Alioski received a yellow card from David Coote for a reckless challenge in 2019.
The North Macedonia international was tackled in the first half against West Brom
Alioski had run in a challenge that probably deserved the yellow card he was shown.
An FA spokesperson confirmed last night that they are investigating the matter.
“These are very serious allegations and we are urgently investigating,” a statement read.
The Sun’s report states that Coote has denied any wrongdoing and is not believed to have benefited financially as a result of the warning.
It comes amid a storm in which Coote is at the centre, following the emergence of a clip which appeared to show him calling Liverpool “shit” and describing Jurgen Klopp as a “fucking German”.
This was followed by a video that appeared to show a man believed to be the referee smelling a white powder during the European Championships in which he was a referee earlier this year.
PGMOL (the body responsible for match refereeing in England) says they take the claims against the 42-year-old “very seriously.”
A PGMOL spokesperson said: “We are following an internal process and taking the allegations regarding David Coote’s conduct very seriously as part of our ongoing full and thorough investigation.” While David remains suspended, his wellbeing remains important to us and he is aware of the support network available to him.’
Coote was removed from his duties in the Premier League and also from international and European competitions by UEFA, which is also investigating.
Coote was suspended from refereeing after the appearance of an alleged video clip that appears to be from many years ago
A shocking leaked video that went viral last week appeared to show Premier League official Coote calling Liverpool a “***” and Jurgen Klopp a “German bastard”.
“The UEFA Referees Committee immediately suspended David Coote until further notice on 11 November when it became aware of his inappropriate behaviour,” a spokesperson said.
In the first clip, the Nottinghamshire official claimed Klopp was “arrogant”. “Apart from having a straight pop at me when I was refereeing them against Burnley in the lockdown, he (Klopp) accused me of lying and gave me a straight pop,” Coote said.
‘I have no interest in talking to someone who is fucking arrogant. I try my best not to talk to him. “My God, you German bastard, fuck me.”
He also added: “Liverpool were shit.” (Klopp is a) bastard, absolute bastard.
‘(James) Milner is fine, I get on well with him. You can see me there with a ‘mask’ on.’
In a second video, the man added: “Just to be clear, that last video can’t go anywhere, seriously.”
The match the man allegedly Coote is referring to in the video was Liverpool’s controversial 1-1 draw with Burnley in 2020.
Things went from bad to worse for Coote earlier this month when The Sun published an eight-second clip purportedly showing him using a rolled-up banknote to inhale a white powder in a hotel room during last summer’s European Championships.
A video also emerged of Coote allegedly inhaling white powder in a hotel room at Euro 2024.
Coote (pictured topless in a separate video) has also been accused of making derogatory comments about Everton Football Club and Liverpool defender Andy Robertson.
That video is said to have been recorded on July 6, the day after the Euro 2024 quarter-final match between Portugal and France, in which Coote was a VAR support official and Michael Oliver was the referee.
It is also reported that it was filmed in a UEFA-funded hotel room. UEFA has banned him from refereeing European matches.
Finally, The Sun published messages, purportedly from an acquaintance of Coote, claiming the 42-year-old attempted to organize a “drug party” at a Travelodge when he “should have been concentrating” on City’s game against Spurs in October. 30.
Coote allegedly booked a hotel room at 7:38 p.m. and sent a reservation notification to another person at 8:04 p.m., just 11 minutes before kickoff.
The latest damning allegations claim Coote sent a message to a friend saying “hope you are getting ready (to meet)” – during half-time of City’s 2-1 defeat to Spurs.
A source told The Sun: “On the day of the match he was messaging me repeatedly and wanted a drug party after he was done with Spurs (where he was fourth official).
“He didn’t book the Travelodge until just before kick-off and then sent a notification 11 minutes after kick-off. It was crazy.
‘Moments before and after he sent me messages. When he sent me a message at halftime I thought it was very surreal.
The investigation into suspended referee David Coote remains ongoing, the PGMOL said.
“Surely he should have concentrated on the game, not organizing drug parties.”
The source claims they eventually walked out of the meeting with Coote and the official “went crazy”, even asking for £73.99 in compensation for the booking fee.
Another source told the outlet that Coote had called Liverpool left-back Andy Robertson a ‘Scottish f****’.
“He said the worst place to referee was Goodison Park because of the young Scousers shouting, shouting, swearing at him and shouting every name under the sun before the games even started,” the source said.