Arsenal and Liverpool are set to face a Football Association investigation following a heated towards the end of the Gunners’ 3-2 win at the Emirates on Sunday.
A row erupted in the aftermath of referee Michael Oliver’s decision to award Arsenal a penalty for Thiago Alcantara’s foul on Gabriel Jesus inside the box.
Tempers flared between Jordan Henderson and Gabriel before Granit Xhaka and several other players became involved. Oliver paused proceedings to speak to both managers and addressed Mikel Arteta and Jurgen Klopp again at full-time.
An FA spokesman initially confirmed the governing body were investigating an incident during the match, but did not specify what had taken place.
When asked about the incident in his post-match press conference, Arteta said only: “It was an incident that happened. Whatever happens on that pitch stays on that pitch.” Klopp added in a TV interview that he was “not allowed” to talk about it.
The FA are currently awaiting the referee’s report before deciding whether to take further steps.
“We are aware of an incident that took place during the match between Arsenal and Liverpool. We are in dialogue with the match officials and will review the details of the incident,” an FA spokesperson said.
Liverpool had earlier been denied a spot-kick of their own despite Gabriel Magalhaes appearing to handball. The Reds’ defeat was also marred by injuries to Trent Alexander-Arnold (ankle) and Luis Diaz (knee).
The result leaves Liverpool 10th with just two wins from their opening eight matches and 14 points off the top of the table, as Klopp conceded his side are “not in the title race”.
