Simon Hooper let Jurgen Klopp off the hook at the Amex, according to a top referee turned analyst.

Mark Halsey said the Liverpool boss deserved punishment for what looked like sarcastic applause aimed at assistant referee Gary Beswick.

In his column for today’s edition of The Sun, Halsey said Klopp’s conduct towards officials needs to improve.

Speaking to media after the game, Klopp said he had no argument with VAR decisions to disallow two Liverpool goals and awarded Albion an injury-time penalty.

But his actions on the pitch suggested differently as far as the spot kick was concerned.

Hooper was working as fourth official at the Amex on Saturday.

Halsey wrote: “I felt Hooper should have alerted (referee) Stuart Attwell and issued Klopp with a minimum of a yellow card, or sent him to the stand.

“On the penalty itself for Andy Robertson’s kick on Danny Welbeck, why was Klopp moaning?

“I didn’t see him comment when Mo Salah was awarded a penalty for similar contact from West Ham’s Arthur Masuaku.

“My concern at the moment is the implementation of VAR.

“They are getting involved too much and creating inconsistency.”

Halsey speculated that video official Kevin Friend, rather than Attwell, awarded the spot kick from Stockley Park.

ALBION ANALYSIS: Moving in the right direction

He wrote: “I was surprised Attwell took just one look of the incident in slow-motion at the monitor.

“Did he make the final decision or was he told what call to make by the VAR?”

In a separate interview. Halsey suggested the first disallowed goal, by Mo Salah, should have stood.

READ MORE: Albion face decision on penalties

He recognised a forensic check showed Salah was offside by a tiny margin.

But he told caughtoffside.com: “You couldn’t see it and they start putting and moving these lines.

“I think we need to take the lines away and view these types of decisions with the naked eye.”