Andoni Iraola stated that he will instruct his players to go down in future after Liverpool were denied a penalty during their defeat by Arsenal. The incident occurred in the first half when Liverpool were trailing 1-0 following Kai Havertz’s opening goal.
Shirt Pull Incident and Referee Decisions
Alexander Isak had his shirt pulled by Jurrien Timber as he attempted to reach a cross from Bradley Barcola for a header. The Liverpool striker remained on his feet, and referee Andy Madley did not award a penalty.
Stuart Attwell, operating on video assistant referee (VAR) duty, concluded that the contact was insufficient to overturn the on-field decision. However, speaking to BBC Sport via Match of the Day, Iraola disagreed with the outcome.
“There is a clear grab of the shirt,” the Spaniard said. “Alex was just in front of him, he was going to head in front of the goal but couldn’t because he grabbed the shirt. If he goes to the floor, they call the penalty 100%. It should be like this but it is what it is. Next time, the managers should tell Alex to go to the floor, otherwise they won’t call it.”
Isak turned and spoke to Timber immediately after the incident but did not appeal to the referee because he stayed on his feet. Elaborating further in his news conference, Iraola told BBC Sport that he would definitely tell his players to be smarter and go down in similar situations.
“It’s a shame you ask me this question, but honestly, yes, we have to tell them, go down, because they’re not going to call it otherwise. And then referees complain why they go down. Because if you don’t go down, you don’t call it,” Iraola stated, adding that Isak is an honest player who tried to play the ball despite the clear pull.
Reports indicated that the play continued because officials judged the contact as minimal and a slight tug rather than sustained holding. Iraola acknowledged that an apology from Pro Ref, the Premier League’s refereeing body, would not change the result.
Former Premier League assistant referee Darren Cann told BBC Sport that Timber took a huge risk and that the decision could easily have gone the other way. Liverpool also had a second penalty appeal dismissed when Cody Gakpo fell in the area under pressure from Christos Tzolis.
Punt Reactions and Pundit Analysis
Former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy told Match of the Day that Arsenal were fortunate and noted that the penalty appeal arrived at a crucial juncture in the match. Gary Neville similarly noted during Sky commentary that it was an unnatural reaction for a striker not to protest vigorously when prevented from scoring.
When asked if Isak should have complained more, Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk defended his teammate. “We have 50 cameras. Why does he have to complain when there are so many cameras? Everyone has seen it. In the end it wasn’t given and we lose the game unfortunately, so well done to Arsenal,” he said.
