Source: Daily_Mail
Rafa ref rant: Liverpool boss Benitez rages as Spurs upset his title hopefuls
Rafa Benitez blew his top at match officials as Liverpool crashed to a 2-1 defeat at rejuvenated Tottenham.
Assistant Sammy Lee was sent off after referee Phil Dowd ignored two penalty appeals in the tense closing moments.
Benoit Assou-Ekotto was accused of fouling Andriy Voronin and the Spurs player was then the centre of handball claims.
Liverpool boss Benitez said: 'I think everyone could see there was a penalty, especially to Voronin, it was so clear. You can say that the hand was to the ball or the ball was to the hand for the other one, but the first one was so clear that it was unbelievable.'
Asked about Dowd's performance, Benitez intimated the official had eyesight problems by removing his spectacles and examining them, before claiming that it would be 'impossible' to be handed two penalties by the Staffordshire referee.
But Benitez reserved most of his anger for fourth official Stuart Attwell who, last season, was at the centre of a storm after awarding 'a goal that never was' in favour of Reading against Watford.
Controversy has dogged Attwell since then and Benitez fanned the flames by saying: 'The fourth official is a young referee and maybe he needs to calm down a bit. He is too young.'
Lee lost his cool with first the assistant referee and then Attwell after seeing Liverpool's first penalty claim waved away, prompting the fourth official to report his actions to Dowd, who swiftly produced the red card.
Benitez also had some words for Attwell as he trudged down the tunnel at full time.
Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp saw proceedings differently. He said: 'I didn't think Liverpool's shout for a penalty was right as Assou-Ekotto has just eased Voronin off the ball.
'It is the kind of bread-and-butter stuff that defenders do week-in, week-out. The ball was also running away from Voronin.'
Spurs took the lead through Assou-Ekotto just before the break but Liverpool were back on terms 10 minutes after the restart when Dowd did spot that Heurelho Gomes had brought down Glen Johnson in the area. Steven Gerrard smashed in the resulting spot-kick.
Redknapp added: 'That penalty was a nailed-on one. I have no arguments about that.'
But his side then claimed all three points in their opening game of the season almost immediately after through Sebastien Bassong, who was making his debut for the club.
Redknapp called on his players to build on the triumph over one of the 'Big Four' by taking their home form on the road.
He said: 'I expected Liverpool to put us under the cosh a bit more. Tottenham beat Chelsea here last year, Manchester United could not win here and we beat Liverpool. The only home game we lost after I took over was 1-0 to Everton.
'We can play at White Hart Lane and now we have to prove this season that we can play away as well on a more consistent basis. We need to win more away games if we are to make an impression.'
