Immensely looking forward to an assistant referee sarcastically applauding Jurgen Klopp over paying £35million for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

Or giving him an ironic wink for continuing to field Dejan Lovren.

That would be amusing.

Although maybe not as amusing as a referee jabbing his finger towards Pep Guardiola’s face and expressing his distaste at a Premier League manager leaving a substitute’s seat unoccupied.

That would be funny.

Guardiola raced onto the pitch at full-time of Cardiff v Man City to berate the ref (
Image:
PA Wire)

Although maybe not as funny as, say, Craig Pawson telling Jose Mourinho he had picked the wrong team, just as Mourinho recently told Pawson he had made the wrong decisions.

They cannot, obviously.

Referees and their assistants cannot react.

In the French league recently, ref Tony Chapron kicked Nantes player Diego Carlos before sending him off. Chapron has been banned for six months, while the player’s suspension was rescinded.

French whistler Chapron did what many officials must have been tempted to... (
Image:
BT Sport 3)
...in giving Diego Carlos a whack — and then showing the Nantes man his red card (
Image:
EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

That was a touch extreme, but it is surprising officials do not lose their cool more often.

Sometimes, it is difficult to understand how they put up with it; how grown men have to stand impassive as over-celebrated players and coaches give them dogs’ abuse.

I was at Anfield last Sunday, when assistant referee Eddie Smart got everything right.

Unlike Klopp, you might argue, whose team were leading before he made three changes and then failed to win.

If it was not for the likes of Smart, Klopp would not have a very lucrative job.

Smart, left, got everything right on Sunday — which is more than can be said for Klopp (
Image:
SKY SPORTS)

Without referees and their assistants, there would be no game, there would be no managers earning £15million a year.

Yet still those managers feel entitled to belittle officials.

Managers are not allowed to go to the referee’s room until half an hour after the game. Yet Guardiola storms onto the pitch in Cardiff, gives Lee Mason what for and nothing is done about it.

Arsene Wenger questioned the integrity of Mike Dean and got a thoroughly meaningless three-match touchline ban.

We are probably to blame for the cult of the manager getting out of control.

Arsenal boss Wenger got a slap on the wrist after questioning Dean's integrity (
Image:
Action Images via Reuters)

Their passion is good to see but, nowadays, most of them can’t wait to get out on the pitch.

Managerial celebrations have certainly come a long way since Sir Alf Ramsey sternly ordered Harold Shepherdson to sit down when his assistant got a little over-excited at the small matter of Geoff Hurst’s third goal in the World Cup final of 1966.

Maybe I will stand corrected, but I cannot recall Bob Paisley doing a massive amount of on-field high-fiving and hugging.

It is generally harmless stuff.

Having sprinted halfway to the Kop to celebrate Mo Salah’s magnificent second goal on Sunday, you could not fail to find irony in Klopp’s later claim that assistant referee Smart ‘wanted to be in the middle of interest’ but it was harmless.

Man United's Mourinho also steamed into officials over decisions he did not like recently (
Image:
Reuters)

What was not harmless was something that Guardiola has also not been averse to — sarcastic applause.

Not the most heinous act in isolation, but an act symptomatic of the belittling of officials which is becoming standard practice amongst the managerial elite in particular.

It was never suggested Klopp might face action for his conduct and words on Sunday, just as it was never suggested Guardiola might face action for going on the pitch to slaughter Mason.

They should have done.

We have long known it is a thankless task but the increasing unwillingness of authorities to clamp down on disrespect is betraying those without whom, we would not have a game.