Although the season may no longer hold much excitement for Arsenal and the 2-2 draw at Anfield doesn’t carry the same weight it once might have, the match was still filled with contentious moments. Encounters between these two sides are rarely uneventful, fitting for teams that share the record for the most goals scored in Premier League matchups.
At one point, Arsenal looked headed for a heavy defeat, but a determined second-half comeback saw them net twice, with the second goal scored by Mikel Merino. Unfortunately for him and Arsenal, the Spaniard was later shown a red card—adding yet another to the club’s growing tally for the 2024/25 campaign.
With all this in mind, football.london returns to break down the major decisions from the match, evaluating whether referee Anthony Taylor made the correct calls.
Andrew Robertson vs Bukayo Saka
In the first half, a seemingly minor clash occurred between Andrew Robertson and Bukayo Saka as they contested a long ball. Saka tried to control it with his left foot, while Robertson appeared to have his right arm wrapped around Saka’s neck.
FL Verdict: It wasn’t just the contact itself that drew concern, but also the force with which Robertson twisted and threw Saka to the ground by the neck. Despite the assistant referee being right there, no foul was awarded during the game.
Surprisingly, the incident received minimal post-match attention—aside from Sky Sports’ Ref Watch, where Dermot Gallagher simply stated: “Foul. Full stop.” Yet, not even that was given on the pitch.