Oldham Athletic boss Paul Dickov has hit out at Neil Swarbrick after the referee handed Liverpool a penalty in his side's 5-1 loss on Friday evening.

With the game level at 1-1 on the stroke of half time, Swarbrick awarded the Reds a penalty which Steven Gerrard converted, much to the frustration of Dickov.

"The penalty's a joke. I thought Maxi fell over, Tom's [Adeyemi] looking at the ball, there's no chance he can see him," Dickov told Goal.com.

"I've been told by the referee that he's got two hands and pushed him in the back, which is never a case. I know by the reaction of my players, especially when decisions go against them, they are an honest bunch."

Goals from Craig Bellamy, Gerrard, Jonjo Shelvey, Andy Carroll and Stewart Downing safely saw Liverpool advance to the next round.

Written by
Matt Law