Jurgen Klopp pointed to atmospheric conditions after drawing with Everton – but he is far from the only person to make outlandish excuses in the sport
Getty Images1Just the fax
Rumours linking David de Gea to a Real Madrid move have been almost constant since he hit the big time at Man United. But the Reds have been equally insistent in fending off Real's interest, even when a transfer looked inevitable.
The closest De Gea came to moving was in 2015, when only a reported malfunctioning fax machine stopped the clubs from completing the paperwork on time on transfer deadline day.
Both sides blamed each other for what was reported officially as a "technical glitch", and more than three years down the line De Gea remains safely at Old Trafford.
AdvertisementGetty2Too many injuries?
Managers blaming their team's failings on a spate of unfortunate injuries is nothing new. But perhaps only Klopp has dared to use the opponent's physical issues to explain away a poor result.
Manchester United held Liverpool to a draw in February despite being forced into three first-half substitutions, something the German paradoxically believes played into their hands.
"Everyone saw at United we were confident and we were much better when all of United’s players were on the pitch but the game changed completely," he claimed after the match.
"The open game and we were better. It changed and we were still in charge and gave nothing away. That is important."
Getty Images3Hopping mad
Spain began the 2006 World Cup in style, destroying Ukraine 4-0 in their first match. But that heavy defeat was naturally no fault of the beaten team, who decided to blame a host of tiny amphibians who had croaked through the night outside their Potsdam hotel.
"Because of the frogs' croaking we hardly got a wink of sleep," defender Vladislav Vashchuk explained after the game. "We all agreed that we would take some sticks and go and hunt them."
Perhaps Vashchuk had a point, though. Once away from the noisy intruders results picked up immediately, as Ukraine battled through to the quarter-finals before eventually going out to winners Italy.
Getty4Where have all the ball-boys gone?
When it comes to ball-boys, too few can be just as damaging to a team's chances as one who is a bad-luck omen. That is, according to Jose Mourinho.
"What I'm about to say is not a criticism, I'm just stating a fact: There were no ballboys in the second half," Mourinho griped in 2011 after his Real Madrid side fell victim to Barcelona in the Supercopa.
"This is something typical of small teams when experiencing difficulties."