Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk will face no retrospective action over an off-the-ball incident involving Arsenal’s Kai Havertz during their 2-2 draw at the Emirates.
That’s according to The Times, as Van Dijk brushes off claims he should have seen red for kicking Havertz, describing it as “part and parcel of the game”.
The incident took place in just the sixth minute, when Havertz was left on the turf following a clash with Van Dijk.
The Liverpool defender initially shoved Havertz with his right arm before appearing to kick him twice with his left leg.
Despite this, no action was taken by the referee, Anthony Taylor, and van Dijk went on to head home Liverpool’s first equaliser from a Trent Alexander-Arnold corner.
The match saw Arsenal take the lead twice, with Bukayo Saka and Mikel Merino each finding the net, but Liverpool fought back, with Mohamed Salah eventually rescuing a point for the visitors, but only after Jurrien Timber went off injured and he was able to climb out of his pocket.
Van Dijk dismissed the controversy around his early clash with Havertz, saying, “It is a physical game, and these things happen.”
Liverpool are currently four points ahead of Arsenal in the Premier League standings and sit just one point behind Manchester City at the top.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta expressed frustration after the match, feeling that his team should have capitalised more effectively on their first-half opportunities.
“It should’ve been a bigger score in the first half,” Arteta said. “They came out in the second half, and we didn’t have the courage.”
Arsenal now find themselves five points behind City and needing to regain momentum if they are to stay in the title race.
