David Coote has hit back at allegations that surfaced last night, claiming he discussed booking a player before he refereed a match five years ago.
Coote is currently suspended by referees’ chiefs after a leaked video circulated online earlier this month where he was alleged to have called former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp a ‘German ****’ and the Anfield club ‘s***’.
The refs’ body is also looking into a video of a man alleged to be Coote snorting a white powder in a hotel room during last summer’s Euros, at which he officiated.
Mail Sport reported last week how an investigation into the official remains ongoing.
Fresh bombshell allegations then emerged on Tuesday night centred around a Championship game between Leeds and West Bromwich in October 2019.
It was reported in The Sun newspaper that Coote had a text exchange with a ‘pal’ in which it was suggested Leeds player Ezgjan Alioski would be booked during the clash at Elland Road, with the North Macedonian star subsequently cautioned in the 18th minute.
However, speaking for the first time since the claims emerged, Coote protested his innocence and slammed the ‘false and defamatory allegations’.
In a statement, he said: ‘I strongly refute these false and defamatory allegations.
David Coote has hit back at allegations that surfaced last night, claiming he discussed booking a player before he refereed a match five years ago
‘Whatever issues I may have had in my personal life, they have never affected my decision-making on the field.
‘I have always held the integrity of the game in the highest regard, refereeing matches impartially, and to the best of my ability.’