Richard Keys claimed that Liverpool full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold should have been sent off in the Reds’ 2-1 win over Tottenham.
A Mohamed Salah brace saw Liverpool claim a crucial win over top-four rivals Spurs on Sunday.
Jurgen Klopp’s side had surprisingly lost their previous two league encounters against relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest and Leeds United so the three points were needed to narrow the distance between Liverpool and the top-four.
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They are still some seven points from Spurs in the Champions League places and a likely unassailable 15 points from table-toppers Arsenal, though the weekend win was a welcomed step in the right direction.
Presenter and pundit Keys was not happy, however…
The incident in question
Keys, a man who’s never afraid to express an opinion, is adamant that Alexander-Arnold should have been sent off during Sunday’s win.
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The right-back was in a race with Spurs wingback Ryan Sessegnon and gave his man a nudge in the back when the pair reached the penalty box.
After feeling the contact, Sessegnon went to ground, only to have his penalty appeal waved away by referee Andy Madley.
Keys made the point that a day earlier Manchester City full-back Joao Cancelo had seen red after bringing down Harry Wilson in the box in a similar fashion, and claimed the same should have happened to Alexander-Arnold.
What Keys had to say about it…
An astounded Keys said in his blog: "Less than 24 hours later we’re all watching Liverpool at Spurs. Would you believe it TAA loses both concentration and his mind and rolls Sessegnon over in exactly the same way that Cancelo had Wilson.
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"There‘s no difference between the two challenges. If anything TAA’s is worse. It’s got to be a pen. And TAA should really go off. There was no attempt to play the ball.
"Ok, Andy Madley didn’t see it so VAR will have a look and at the very minimum ask Madley to review it surely? I hear myself shouting ‘come on guys. This is easy. Darren England made this same call yesterday. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Strange. So I have a look at who’s in VAR. You know what’s coming, don’t you? Yep. Darren England.
"This time he’s sitting on his hands. Why? Did he think he was wrong at City? No one did on the day or he’d have been asked to review his own decision. So what happened? It’s incredible. The only consistent thing about VAR is its inconsistency.”
Keys added: "I understand that when so many of these calls are a matter of opinion. I’ve said before - that’s why VAR will always let us down - because most of these calls are about opinions - but come on. This was the same guy. How on earth can he see two incidents - exactly the same incidents - differently 24 hours apart? Incredible."
Topics: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, Joao Cancelo, Premier League, Jurgen Klopp