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"Of Course It Was A Penalty": William Saliba Admits Arsenal Got Lucky Against Liverpool

William Saliba is convinced that Arsenal should have conceded a penalty kick during Saturday's 1-1 draw at Liverpool for a Martin Odegaard handball.

Robert Summerscales

"Of Course It Was A Penalty": William Saliba Admits Arsenal Got Lucky Against Liverpool
"Of Course It Was A Penalty": William Saliba Admits Arsenal Got Lucky Against Liverpool /

Arsenal defender William Saliba is convinced that his team should have conceded a penalty kick during Saturday's 1-1 draw at Liverpool.

The Gunners survived a strong penalty appeal in the first half after captain Martin Odegaard performed an NBA-style move to take a low ball away from Mo Salah.

Referee Chris Kavanagh did not point to the spot - a decision that the VAR then decided was not a clear and obvious error.

But Saliba appeared to disagree.

Saliba was asked in a post-game interview with Viaplay: "I have to ask you, do you think it was a penalty - the handball with Martin?"

A laughing Saliba replied: "Yeah, of course. Of course it was a penalty. But I'm not the ref."

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp also believed that the referee and VAR got the call wrong.

"I'm pretty sure someone will explain it to me and say it wasn't a handball but I don't know how," Klopp told Sky Sports.

"I won't say the referee can't see it because I have no clue where he was at that moment.

"But when somebody sits in their office, how can they not come to the conclusion that it might be worth having another look."

Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard pictured touching the ball with his left hand inside the penalty area during his team's 1-1 draw with Liverpool at Anfield in December 2023
Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard pictured touching the ball with his left hand inside the penalty area during his team's 1-1 draw with Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday / Sky Sports

Arsenal had earlier taken the lead inside 207 seconds when Gabriel headed home from an Odegaard free-kick.

But Liverpool hit back in the 29th minute when Salah scored a brilliant solo goal after dribbling past Oleksandr Zinchenko following a 60-yard assist by Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Saturday's draw ensured that Arsenal will be top of the Premier League table on Christmas Day for the second year in a row.

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Robert Summerscales
ROBERT SUMMERSCALES

Robert Summerscales launched FanNation Futbol in February 2022. Rob is a British journalist who previously spent two years on the sports desk at the Daily Mail in London, having earlier served as editor of CaughtOffside.com. He has been to the last two FIFA Men's World Cups, in Russia and Qatar, and is looking forward to completing his hat-trick in North America in 2026.