Alexis MacAllister was adamant that his team should have been given a penalty in the dying moments of Liverpool’s 1-1 draw with Manchester City.
Despite already converting a penalty earlier in the match, the Argentine believed he was fouled in the box by City’s Jeremy Doku, but neither the on-field referee nor the VAR official agreed, much to the surprise of spectators both at the stadium and watching from home.
Speaking to BBC Sport after the game, Mac Allister said of the decision: “I think it’s a clear penalty. I cannot say much more.
“I think the ref did a very good job throughout the game, but I think he made a mistake in the last decision.”
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp was furious with the decision after the game, saying in his post-match interview: “Isn’t it [VAR] there for making the right decision?
This situation in all positions on the pitch is 100% a foul. And it is a yellow card. He hits the ball, but if the ball is not there, he kills him.
Former Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg, who now works as a referee analyst for Nottingham Forest, admitted in his column for the Daily Mail that Liverpool should have been awarded a penalty.
He wrote: “The ball bounces up. Alexis Mac Allister moves towards it. Jeremy Doku’s foot is high. He catches Mac Allister in the chest.
“Outside of the box, this would have resulted in a free-kick every day of the week. Just because it happened inside the box does not suddenly transform it into a clean challenge when Mac Allister might be left playing connect the dots on his chest on Monday morning.
“Regardless of the magnitude of the match and the fact it happened in the 98th minute, this was an incident worthy of a penalty. “