After Liverpool's Premier League defeat to Arsenal at Anfield, Andoni Iraola said Alexander Isak should have been awarded a first-half penalty. Iraola also said he will tell his players to go down in future because he believes penalties are not called otherwise.
What Iraola said about the Isak incident
Iraola said: "I think the Isak one is a clear penalty."
Iraola said: "He’s going to head the ball in front of the goal. They grab him where everyone sees the shirt. You don’t need a lot just to affect Alex because the ball goes just in front of him."
Iraola said: "I don’t see the reason why. Probably because he doesn’t dive or he doesn’t go to the floor. It shouldn’t be a reason not to consider a penalty."
His view on the Gakpo appeal
Iraola said: "And then after the Gakpo one, I think it’s a sustained holding."
Iraola said: "But I understand their argument and I think they are right that they say the ball was too long and Cody wouldn’t have arrived to the ball."
Iraola said: "But then you are basically accepting that the first one is a pen. So you cannot use the argument in both ways differently. So I think it’s a pen the Alex one is."
Iraola on telling players to go down
Asked if he will instruct his players to go down in future, Iraola said: "It’s a shame you ask me this question. But honestly, yes, we have to tell them to go down because they are not going to call it otherwise."
Iraola said: "And then the referees complain why they go down. Because if you don’t go down, you don’t call it."
