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Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk appeared to ask referee Chris Kavanagh if he ‘had been drinking’ during his side’s match against Arsenal on Saturday afternoon. The defender was adjudged to have fouled Gabriel Jesus early in the second half, leaving the ex-Southampton star fuming.
Arsenal enjoyed the perfect start to their trip to Anfield after Gabriel Magalhaes headed past Brazil teammate Alisson Becker in the fourth minute after a whipped cross from Martin Odegaard. Mikel Arteta’s side weren’t able to retain their lead though, with Mohamed Salah’s sensational solo goal levelling the scoring in the 29th minute.
The Egyptian received the ball outwide before weaving his way past the motionless Oleksandr Zinchenko and firing a fierce strike into the top corner. Both sides then wasted key chances in what is likely to be a six-pointer between two title contenders.
As a result, tensions ran high on occasions in Merseyside – and they threatened to boil over when Van Dijk took aim at referee Kavanagh. After the ball was fizzed into the feet of Jesus on the half-way line, the Liverpool skipper appeared to swipe through the back of the ex-Manchester City star to retrieve possession.
Van Dijk, of course, came away with the ball as a result. However, his attempt to fuel another Liverpool attack were cut short after Kavanagh blew his whistle to award Arsenal a foul. The Reds were furious with the decision, with Van Dijk angrily approaching the referee whilst appearing to lift an imaginary glass to his mouth and asking the official if he ‘had been drinking’.
Although referees have been granted the licence to book players for overstepping the line within interactions, as shown by Diogo Dalot’s dismissal for Manchester United last weekend, Van Dijk escaped a yellow card.
