Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp was left stunned at not awarding his side an injury-time penalty as his latest Premier League meeting with Pep Guardiola produced another scintillating and controversial epic.
Jeremy Doku's 98th-minute strike on Alex Mac Allister went unpunished by referee Michael Oliver and was deemed fair by VAR Stuart Atwell, leaving the title chasers sharing the points in a 1-1 draw.
But the controversial stoppage time decision led Klopp to suggest only 'non-football' people would think it was not a penalty.
"I think everyone in this room thinks that if he whistles a penalty, it is not a scandal," Klopp said.
"He hits him on the chest, yes, he touches the ball earlier. Does that make any difference at any position on the field when your leg is that high?
"You can kick the ball first, then the foot is there and you go. It's obviously not a red card, but I talk about it so often. Why would the guy in the VAR studio think this isn't clear and obvious? What should you eat for lunch if you think it's not clear and obvious?
Klopp believes that if the foul had occurred anywhere else on the pitch, a foul would have been awarded.
"This situation in all positions on the pitch is 100 percent a foul and a yellow card," he said.
"He hit the ball, but he can only hit the ball because his foot was there. If the ball isn't there, he kills it. It is a punishment for all football people on this planet. If you don't think there is one, then maybe you're not a football person.
"But I'm really not angry. It's just the situation. It is well. I'm so happy with the way we played today. It really doesn't matter to me. I'm already over it."
Klopp calls Mike Dean
Sky TV's referee advisor Mike Dean initially suggested on commentary that Oliver would be asked to review the incident, but then turned around and agreed with VAR's call not to do so. Telegraph harbor columnist Keith Hackett said the incident was "clear and obvious" punishment.
The story continues
'You employ Mike Dean, he works for Sky? Congratulations, that is a great appointment by the way, he will find something," said Klopp.
Despite the late upset, the Liverpool manager said the match was one of the best in terms of quality he has ever been involved in, suggesting his side's performance convinced him they could go all the way in the title race.
"I would have liked to take one of the huge chances we created," Klopp said.
"Yes, we are lucky that Doku hit the post, but we played an exceptional football match. For us, besides the result, the most important information is that we are there. We go to the extreme. Let's see what we get for it, but the boys fought so hard for absolutely everything to be there. Arsenal are firing on all cylinders at the moment.
"They still played an incredible game last night. City is city. So for us, it's probably kind of how we got through all that, that we're still here. It's crazy with all these games we've had and the team situation we have.
"Today I saw the best 53 minutes we had against Manchester City. It was exceptional how we played, and important that we also learned that about ourselves. That we can do that.
"The result is only one thing. And if we win today, what will we be, four points ahead of City? That's not a distance at which you should fall asleep. And maybe two points ahead of Arsenal. The way they play, they won't stop. For us it is important to achieve the result after all the different ways we have found, not always great performances, but only the most intense battles.
"That's the information we need so we can create something like this today. Our injury situation is still terrible. There are a lot of players not available, it's crazy."
Liverpool should have had another penalty, but don't blame the referee
The quality of this game lived up to expectations and excellent playing skills were shown, and I was delighted to see a refereeing performance of the same caliber.
Michael Oliver gave a performance that underlined why he is England's number 1 football referee. He was well supported by his two colleagues on the line, Stuart Burt and Dan Cook, and I hope that many grassroots officials will have adopted Oliver's anticipation, movement and positioning to get those good viewing positions and angles that produced a result. big penalty decision - when Manchester City goalkeeper Ederson Darwin brought down Nunez with a reckless challenge.
But unfortunately I can't say the same about VAR Stuart Attwell, who missed a clear and obvious penalty in the final minute and would have given Liverpool a chance to win the match.
Oliver is not to blame here - far from it. He was in a good position to deny Liverpool's requests for a penalty when Mohamed Salah went to the ground somewhat dramatically.
However, play continued and in the final seconds of the match Oliver became invisible as City's Jeremy Doku swung a raised foot towards Liverpool midfielder Alexis Mac Allister as the pair challenged for the ball.
It was a raised foot above his waist that landed on his opponent. Despite making contact with the ball first, it was a careless challenge. Oliver, blind, had to rely on the VAR at that moment. Liverpool felt they had a strong penalty claim and, in retrospect, Oliver will be disappointed he wasn't sent to the screen to watch. In my opinion it was a foul and Attwell missed a clear and obvious mistake that needed to be looked at again. We will never know whether it cost Liverpool a winning goal.
Oliver was also in a good position to correctly award Liverpool a penalty earlier in the match when he punished Ederson for his reckless challenge on Nunez.
Some called for the goalkeeper to be sent off for the challenge, with him being substituted shortly afterwards due to injury, but again I think Oliver made the right call in warning him and keeping the match at 11 v 11 .
The law states that recklessness occurs "when a player acts without regard to the danger or consequences to an opponent and should be warned."
Oliver was right to award Ederson a yellow card for his reckless challenge, but for it to be a red card the following criteria must apply under the law: 'The use of excessive force is when a player fails to make the necessary use of exceeds the level of force and/or endangers the safety of an opponent and must be sent off the field."
Oliver was right and showed why he is our number 1 referee. He remains calm and can read the game exceptionally well, allowing him to be in touch with the game and reach the important viewing angles for seeing, recognizing, thinking and acting.
