A new Martin Odegaard penalty from Arsenal’s match against Liverpool has been sent.Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher has informed Arsenal that they are lucky not to have given up a penalty against Liverpool.
Gabriel Magalhaes and Mohamed Salah scored in the thrilling 1-1 draw between the two championship contenders at Anfield on Saturday, but there may havebeen a second goal on the day for the latter. Towards the end of the first half, Salah attempted to play a sharp ball forward but it was blocked by the hand of Odegaard at close-range. While it initially looked accidental, as the Gunners captain lost his footing, other camera angles showed him moving his arm towards the ball. Despite this, VAR agreed with Chris Kavanagh and chose not to award a spot-kick with the decision baffling Jurgen Klopp. “I’m pretty sure someone will explain to me it’s not a handball but I don’t know how,” Klopp admitted to Sky Sports. “I don’t think the ref can see because I have no clue where he was in that moment but when somebody is sitting [in the VAR room at Stockley Park], how can he not come to the conclusion and maybe it might be worth having another look.”
Now, Gallagher has offered his thoughts as part of Sky Sports’ Ref Watch and perhaps to the surprise of many, he has agreed with Klopp that a penalty should have been awarded. He said: “I will say my first reaction was that he had slipped and his arm touched the floor but then you see it [from a different angle] it clearly doesn’t. “He slips, does a slip negate an offence? No. Does he move his arm towards the ball? Well, the argument from VAR is that he makes his body smaller, but as you can see by doing that he makes sure he traps the ball – so I think a more understandable decision would be to give a penalty. “The referee didn’t give it on field and VAR felt he slipped but I still go back to the fact, if you slip and pull someone over, it is still a penalty. They said they felt as though his arm moving made his body smaller but as you can see he moves his hand towards the ball.”
