MUCH has been made of the phantom whistle that caused Cherries skipper Tommy Elphick to stop in the build-up to Liverpool's second goal last night – but was it decisive?

A stellar first-half display helped Liverpool to a 3-1 League Cup quarter-final victory at Dean Court but Lazar Markovic’s 27th-minute strike provided the number one post-match talking point.

Elphick stopped with his arm raised in the air having heard what he believed to be the referee’s whistle with Markovic netting on the rebound from Phillipe Coutinho’s subsequent shot.

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Asked about the incident in his post-match press conference, Cherries boss Eddie Howe said: “I am aware he stopped because he thought the referee had blown. I heard the whistle myself. It was a bizarre one and Tommy genuinely believed it to be the referee.

“I’m sure the person who did it, whoever he or she was, wouldn’t have meant to have cost us a goal and it was a bizarre situation.

“When you believe the referee has blown the whistle, sometimes you get a booking for carrying on. I don’t think anyone was to blame and it was still a quality finish from their player.

“At that stage, it was difficult because it was the second goal. I still felt at 1-0, the game was very much on and felt if we could have got that second goal back at 3-2, it would have been a really good end to the game.”

But do you believe the result would have been different had it not been for Whistlegate? Cast your vote and have your say in our comments section.