Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk will not receive any retrospective punishment for an off-the-ball incident with Arsenal’s Kai Havertz during their 2-2 draw at the Emirates, as reported by The Times. Van Dijk dismissed calls for a red card for kicking Havertz, stating it’s “part and parcel of the game.”
The incident took place in the sixth minute when Havertz fell after colliding with Van Dijk, who initially pushed him before seemingly kicking him twice. Referee Anthony Taylor did not take any action, and Van Dijk later scored Liverpool’s equalizer from a corner by Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Arsenal initially led twice with goals from Bukayo Saka and Mikel Merino, but Liverpool leveled the score with a goal from Mohamed Salah, even after Jurrien Timber’s injury disrupted Arsenal’s play. Van Dijk downplayed the controversy, saying, “It is a physical game, and these things happen.”
Currently, Liverpool is four points ahead of Arsenal in the Premier League and just one point behind Manchester City. Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta expressed disappointment, feeling his team squandered chances in the first half. “It should’ve been a bigger score in the first half,” he noted. “They came out in the second half, and we didn’t have the courage.” Arsenal now trails City by five points and needs to regain momentum to stay in the title race.
