Iraola fumes over Isak penalty claim as Arsenal win at Anfield
Andoni Iraola did not hide his frustration after Liverpool were denied two penalty claims in their 1-0 defeat to Arsenal at Anfield, a result that ended the Gunners' 14 year wait for a league win at the ground.
Kai Havertz's early strike, following a poor clearance from Alisson, proved decisive. But the post-match talking point centred on referee Andy Madley's decision not to award Liverpool a penalty when Jurriën Timber appeared to pull Alexander Isak's shirt as the striker tried to reach Bradley Barcola's cross. A second claim, for a hold by Christos Tzolis on Cody Gakpo, was reviewed by VAR Stuart Attwell and also rejected.
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Asked whether Isak should have gone down under the challenge from Timber, the Liverpool head coach gave a striking response. “It's a shame you ask me this question but, honestly, yes, we have to tell them to go down because they're not going to call it otherwise,” Iraola said, as quoted by The Guardian. “And then referees complain why they go down. Because if you don't go down, you don't call it. I think Alex is honest. He tries to go for the ball, everyone can see live straight away there is a clear, clear pull.”
Iraola questions consistency of VAR explanation
Iraola accepted the reasoning behind the Gakpo decision but felt it contradicted the logic used to dismiss the Isak appeal. “The Isak one is a clear penalty. He is going to head the ball in front of the goal and they grab him where everyone sees the shirt. The ball just goes in front of Alex and I don't see the reason why [it isn't given]. Probably because he doesn't dive or he doesn't go to the floor. It shouldn't be a reason not to concede a penalty,” he said.
“The Gakpo one, I think it's a sustained holding but I understand their argument and I think they are right when they say the ball was too long in the air and Cody wouldn't have arrived to the ball. But then you're basically accepting that the first one is a penalty, no? You cannot use the argument in both ways differently.”
Arteta delighted with response after Fleetwood exit
Mikel Arteta, who said he had not seen the Isak incident, was focused instead on how his players responded just days after Arsenal's Carabao Cup exit at Fleetwood. “It feels better as a manager [to win at Anfield] because it has been such a long time without this feeling. I am extremely proud, especially given the conditions we arrived to the game,” he said. “The defeat against Fleetwood looks like the end of the world but then you have to pick yourself up. That is the beautiful part of this game.”
The win means Arsenal have now won at all four grounds where they fell short during last season's title winning campaign: Anfield, Villa Park, the Stadium of Light and the City Ground. “This is a mission we didn't complete for 14 years,” Arteta added. “There were reasons for that. Some were psychological, some were related to the quality we showed on the pitch, and some were decisions. We knew we had to nail all of them.”
Arteta was also informed that Liverpool had failed to register a shot on target in a Premier League match for the first time in 16 years. “I didn't know about that stat but that is incredible,” he said. “It didn't feel like that at the time, they are a team that shoots a lot so you have to be good at denying them space and blocking shots. To do that against this team is remarkable, I would say.”
Arsenal will look to carry the momentum from a landmark result at Anfield into their next fixtures as the title race continues.
