The ’50:50′ call made by referee Anthony Taylor cost Arsenal the victory over Liverpool, according to former Premier League official Mike Dean, but he should not be held accountable for it.
With goals from Mikel Merino and Bukayo Saka at halftime, followed by a header from Virgil van Dijk, Arsenal had established a solid advantage against their fellow championship contenders. But as the match went on, Mikel Arteta witnessed an increasing number of injuries decimate his ranks.
William Saliba, who was suspended, was already absent from the defence, and Martin Odegaard and other players were still recovering. Jurrien Timber and Gabrial Magalhaes were placed on the injury list at the end of the match, and Liverpool would finally equalise.
A late burst saw the home team put up their best effort, and the ball was in the net on ninety minutes, just when it appeared the visitors had a better chance of winning. After Kai Havertz lobbed Caoimhin Kelleher, Gabriel Jesus scored an unguarded goal, but it was not enough to keep the score at 2-2.
This is because Jakub Kiwior’s foul on Dominik Szoboszlai was already blown for by referee Taylor. Havertz received the header after the Poland international leaped on top of the Liverpool midfielder. Since it was outside of their purview, VAR was unable to intervene at the time of this intervention.
Former referee Dean responded on Sky Sports, saying, “It’s more of a soft foul if anything, to be fair he’s just penalised the Arsenal player.”
He went on to praise his fellow official, saying, “It’s probably a 50:50 call, for me.” “He’s had a good game the referee, so I can’t criticise him for that to be honest with you,” he said.
After the final whistle blew, some members of the home team approached Taylor and his assistants, demonstrating their obvious frustration, possibly directly related to this expensive choice. Jesus’ complaints earned him a yellow card.
