Arsenal took an early lead with Gabriel Magalhaes heading home from Martin Odegaard's free kick just four minutes into the game. However, Liverpool quickly responded, equalizing 25 minutes later when Trent Alexander-Arnold's precise cross-field pass found Mohamed Salah, who skillfully avoided Oleksandr Zinchenko and scored with a left-footed shot into the roof of the net.
Despite the comeback, Liverpool felt aggrieved as they believed they should have been awarded a penalty for a handball by Odegaard before halftime. The ball clearly struck Odegaard's arm inside the penalty area, but their appeals were dismissed. Odegaard seemed to use his arm for leverage as he slipped on the turf, and the VAR review concluded that he was attempting to move his arm toward his body.
Jurgen Klopp was dissatisfied with both the on-field decision by Chris Kavanagh and the subsequent VAR review. Klopp also took a dig at former referee Dermot Gallagher, suggesting that the 66-year-old would defend the officials' conclusion in his Ref Watch segment on Sky Sports News.
Speaking to the media after the game, Klopp expressed his frustration with the decision.
