Liverpool should have had a penalty against Arsenal, the Premier League's Key Match Incidents (KMI) Panel has ruled. The panel found that Arsenal defender Jurrien Timber pulled back Liverpool striker Alexander Isak in the 21st minute. The game at Anfield on November 1 ended 1-0 to Arsenal. The Nile Post, citing BBC Sport, and Capital FM reported the ruling.
Isak just failed to get his head on a cross from Bradley Barcola. Referee Andy Madley did not give a penalty. Video assistant referee (VAR) Stuart Attwell checked the incident and cleared it. Replays showed Timber grabbing Isak's shirt. The Nile Post reported that Isak stayed on his feet.
The panel voted 4:1 that the referee should have given the penalty on the field. It voted 3:2 that the VAR should have stepped in and sent Madley to the pitchside monitor. Two panellists cited the "subjectivity in assessing impact" as a reason not to intervene. The majority called it a "clear and obvious error" by the VAR.
The panel agreed unanimously that Timber's challenge did not merit a red card for denying an obvious goalscoring opportunity. Arsenal were already 1-0 up through Kai Havertz at the time. His goal proved to be the only one of the game.
Liverpool manager Andoni Iraola told BBC Match of the Day after the match that there was "a clear grab of the shirt". He said Isak was about to head the ball in front of goal but could not because of the pull. Iraola said the penalty would have been given "100%" if Isak had gone to ground. "The answer is you have to dive. If you don't dive they won't call it," he said.
The panel also found a second VAR error, from October 31. It ruled that Ipswich should have had a penalty against Hull City when Nobel Mendy held back Dara O'Shea at a corner. Referee Peter Bankes missed the offence, and VAR Neil Davies took no action. The score was 0-0 at the time. Ipswich took the lead shortly afterwards, and the game ended 2-2.