The two English heavyweights, Liverpool and Manchester City shared the spoils in a 1-1 draw in a possible Priemer League title-deciding clash at Anfield on Sunday. The visitors took the lead in the first half, courtesy of John Stones. However, an injury-hit host side retaliated with a fearless approach in the second half.
Alexis Mac Allister pulled the Reds back into the contest with a spot-kick in the 50th minute after halftime, shifting the momentum in favor of Liverpool. This high-voltage clash saw another twist, marred by a controversial refereeing decision. Manchester City star Kyle Walker spoke out on the incident, bringing further spotlight to the moment.
Kyle Walker hails ref Michael Oliver over Liverpool drama
Liverpool dominated the attack and created numerous chances but failed to capitalize and secure all three points to reclaim first place on the table. However, a chance had come their way in the 99th minute to revive themselves with a second penalty claim from the hosts, after being awarded the equalizer.
Jeremy Doku’s high-flying challenge inside the box on Mac Allister, striking the chest of the Argentine in the process, left the home crowd in awe. Despite what appeared to be a clear foul, match referee Michael Oliver denied the hosts a last-gasp opportunity, and a VAR check upheld the decision.
This contentious call by the match officials left the home team and their crowd stunned, a sentiment that Reds boss Jurgen Klopp also agreed with, claiming it was a ‘clear penalty’. Meanwhile, Manchester City captain Kyle Walker praised referee Michael Oliver, backing the ref’s decision while speaking to Sky Sports.
Walker said, “I feel the ref did really well. Once you have the Anfield crowd behind them, he could’ve crumbled, But that shows his experience, shows his character and that’s why he is regarded as probably one of the best referees in this country and the world at this minute. The VAR has checked it, the ref has done it. That’s all I’m going to say.”
Clearly, many fans did not share his sentiment and took to social media to criticize his take.
Soccer fans outraged over Kyle Walker’s Michael Oliver praise
Kyle Walker, the England international defender, has previously received backlash after revealing a shocking cheating saga and faced trolling by fans for drawing comparisons of Kevin De Bruyne to Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. The 33-year-old has now garnered outrage from fans on social media for his views on the controversial penalty decision in the Liverpool and Manchester City game.
A fan retweeted with a caption, “This is not for a professional player to comment on. He’s a rival player playing for a rival team. This sort of public response just creates aggressive toxic disharmony within fan bases towards referees. This is so poor.”
Another wrote, “Look forward to Sky Sports giving Virgil Van Dijk a platform to call Michael Oliver a bottler.”
“Michael Oliver gets paid by Man City’s owners yet was allowed to officiate a game for them against their title rivals and make this HORRIFIC error, All makes sense now,” a third fan accused Oliver.
Another fan commented, “A cheater praises cheating what a surprise,” calling out Kyle Walker on his cheating scandal.
What are your thoughts on the controversial call?
