Both Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher expressed bewilderment on behalf of Liverpool after a penalty was not awarded against Arsenal’s Martin Odegaard for handball in the top-of-the-table clash on Saturday.
Just four minutes into the game the deadlock was broken when Gabriel Magalhaes headed in Odegaard’s free-kick in front of the Kop, stunning Anfield. But a controversial call added to the intensity of the high-stakes match between Jurgen Klopp and Mikel Arteta’s teams.
Midway through the first half, the provider of the opener, Martin Odegaard, almost presented Arsenal with a potential downfall as he seemed to handle the ball in the penalty area. Mohamed Salah’s flick-on directly struck Odegaard from close distance, with his hand positioned low above the turf. The incident raised contention regarding a possible handball, adding to the drama of the top-of-the-table clash between Liverpool and Arsenal.
On-field referee Chris Kavanagh did not spot the potential handball by Martin Odegaard, allowing the visitors to counter-attack. VAR David Coote reviewed the incident but chose not to pull play back and award a penalty to Liverpool.
Gary Neville, commenting on the match for Sky Sports, even sided with Liverpool, calling Odegaard “lucky” for the decision not to award a penalty.
“I think that’s a penalty, he’s very fortunate there (Martin) Odegaard. There may be something in the slip but I think that’s a penalty.”