Fans have criticised former Premier League referee Peter Walton over comments made about Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp and Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta.
Walton was speaking in the wake of a Turkish match official being assaulted by a club chairman on Sunday evening. Referee Halil Umut Meler was punched by Ankaragucu president Faruk Koca after the Turkish side conceded a 97th-minute equaliser during a 1-1 draw with Caykur Rizespor.
A mass brawl then began as the referee lay on the ground, with Meler later taken to hospital for treatment. He was discharged on Tuesday. Koca resigned from his role as president shortly after the attack, and all football in Turkey was suspended.
Turkey president Recep Tayyik Erdogan even released a statement, in which he condemned the attack. Koca served as part of Erdogan’s government across two spells between 2002 and 2011.
Reacting to the attack in his column for The Times, Walton made the bold claim that the authorities need to do more to punish managers such as Klopp and Arteta over their comments towards referees – in order to change the culture and attitudes towards match officials in English football.
He wrote: “This country is having a reckoning with the abuse of officials and maybe this can be a jumping off point to make meaningful change. “First things first, the FA, the SFA, UEFA, every governing body needs to come out immediately and condemn these actions.
“Then, maybe the likes of Jurgen Klopp and Mikel Arteta will think twice next time they rush to harangue an official or question his impartiality after the game and incite pile-ons.
“However, words and statements only get you so far. The real truth is that we need to be much harsher in terms of the punishments we dish out. Only then might we see some real change.
“Peter Walton on referee attack in Turkey ‘First things first…every governing body needs to come out immediately and condemn these actions…then, maybe the likes of Jurgen Klopp and Mikel Arteta will think twice next time they rush to harangue an official or question his…
While some fans agreed with Walton that change is needed in English football, others were critical of the former Premier League referee, who was let go as an analyst by TNT Sports earlier this year – especially for bringing Klopp and Arteta into the conversation.
One wrote: “Having a word with or even shouting at the ref is very different from decking them.”Another said: “Every manager that’s ever lived has been guilty of approaching officials when they aren’t happy.”
A third added: “What is he even on about? Yes Klopp and Arteta as well as others push it with officials, but comparing them to what happened in Turkey is laughable.”
A fourth exclaimed: “All Jurgen’s fault as normal…”A fifth said: “Peter Walton making outrageous statements taking things way out of context.”
