Arsenal defender William Saliba has admitted that Liverpool should have had a penalty in the 1-1 draw at the weekend.

Martin Odegaard placed his hand on the ground to stop the ball inside his own box during the first half of the contest on Saturday evening and, asked whether it was a handball, Saliba honestly replied:

“Yeah, of course. It was a penalty but I’m not the ref and they have to accept [it].”

Some may argue that the Reds didn’t deserve more than a draw from the match anyway but the incident came at a crucial moment in the first half and it could have significantly impacted the course of the game if the home side had been awarded a penalty.

As it was, the two sides shared the spoils, with Arsenal top of the table at Christmas, and Jurgen Klopp’s team trailing a point behind in second.

Why didn’t VAR intervene?

When you have an opposition player openly admitting a penalty should have been given, you do have to question how VAR didn’t see it.

Considering it was a “clear and obvious” error, it was a surprise to see that match officials at Stockley Park stuck with the on-field decision.

Liverpool have been on the wrong end of a few decisions this season

The Arsenal game was just the latest example of referees making some questionable calls against the Reds. Alexis Mac Allister was wrongly sent off against Bournemouth in August. It didn’t ultimately have an effect on the final score and the Argentinian’s ban was successfully overturned.

Of course, the most contentious incident came in Liverpool’s only league defeat against Tottenham back in late September. Luis Diaz’s goal was chalked off for offside incorrectly, despite being checked by VAR.

Watch a preview of Liverpool’s plans for the January transfer window on Shots!TV here