Manchester United striker, Wout Weghorst, was seen touching the ‘This Is Anfield’ sign ahead of his side’s 7-0 hammering against Liverpool.
United were humiliated by their biggest rivals at Anfield on Sunday.
Weghorst lasted 58 minutes but was substituted with the score at 3-0.
In the tunnel before the match, the Dutchman was seen touching the famous Liverpool sign.
The ‘This is Anfield’ sign in the tunnel is iconic and Jurgen Klopp once told his players they weren’t allowed to touch it until they’ve won a trophy at the club.
Speaking in 2016, Klopp said: “I’ve told my players not to touch the ‘This Is Anfield’ sign until they win something.
“It’s a sign of respect. I touched it when I was manager of Borussia Dortmund but we lost 4-0.”
And Weghorst was seen doing the same before the 7-0 loss.
Why?
Well, it turns out he’s actually a Liverpool fan.
“I always found Liverpool very special. I still get goosebumps from ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’. There are other great English clubs too, and I always liked Milan because so many Dutch played there,” Weghorst told DAZN in 2020.
And in 2018, he told De Telegraaf: “I’ve dreamt of [playing for Liverpool] since childhood.”
We wonder what Roy Keane would make of it…
Actually, we don’t wonder.
That’s because we already know EXACTLY what Keane thinks of it.
When appearing as an ITV pundit alongside Ian Wright during a Liverpool match last year, Keane let us all know what he thinks of an opponent touching the sign.
When asked by presenter Mark Pougatch if he touched the sign, Wright said: “Course, but I didn’t touch it when going out with the guys. When you went out for the warm-up, you’d look around and touch it because it’s iconic, it’s unbelievable.
“I didn’t want them (his team-mates) to see me because I didn’t want it to feel it was disrespectful, it wasn’t disrespectful, I just wanted to tough that sign.”
When Keane was asked if he touched the sign he responded: “Of course not. There’d be no point.
“It’s okay, it’s a tradition for the English (Liverpool) players but not for the opposition players, I’m not sure why you touched it Wrighty.”
Keane added: “I think it’s silly, it’s childish,’ before Wright fired back: “It’s not childish, it’s an unbelievable thing to be able to do.”
“What benefit did you get out of it?” Keane asked.
“I’ve touched it. I’m one of the few people to have touched it. I bet there’s a lot of fans that haven’t touched that,” Wright replied.
Weghorst touching it before losing 7-0 against your biggest rivals is bound to go down well with Keane…
