Arsenal moved three points clear at the top of the Premier League after defeating Liverpool 1-0 at Anfield.
Kai Havertz’s early goal secured Arsenal’s first league victory at Anfield in 14 years and opened up a nine-point gap over Liverpool, who remain among the chasing pack.
However, the result was overshadowed by a first-half incident involving Alexander Isak and Jurrien Timber. The Arsenal defender appeared to pull back the Swedish striker as he attempted to reach Bradley Barcola’s cross, but the referee and VAR decided against awarding a penalty.
Iraola was particularly frustrated that Isak stayed on his feet rather than going to ground, suggesting players were being encouraged to exaggerate contact to win decisions.
“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,” said the Liverpool manager.
“I don’t see the reason why. Only because he hasn’t dived or he hasn’t gone to the floor. It shouldn’t be a reason, but of course it’s a penalty.”
Liverpool pushed hard for an equaliser before the break, with Florian Wirtz striking the crossbar with a free-kick and Alexis Mac Allister heading a good opportunity over the bar.
Iraola felt his players deserved more from the contest but was encouraged by their response after falling behind.
“We had good chances. We hit the crossbar and had good situations we were not able to finish. We definitely deserved a goal,” he said.
“I loved the reaction from my players after going 1-0 down. I loved a lot of moments of the game. We have to keep going. It is very early in the season.”
Arteta, meanwhile, was delighted with Arsenal’s ability to respond after their embarrassing League Cup defeat to fourth-tier Fleetwood earlier in the week.
The Gunners’ manager admitted the victory carried extra significance, given the difficulties his team have experienced on previous visits to Anfield.
“After the defeat against Fleetwood, it looks like the end of the world. Then you have to pick yourself up and understand that this is the beautiful part of this game,” Arteta said.
“The mission was something that we didn’t accomplish in 14 years and there were reasons for that. Some of them were psychological problems, some of them were related to the quality that we showed on the pitch, certain moments or decisions and we needed to nail absolutely all of them.”
Arsenal now have a three-point advantage over Manchester City at the summit, with their historic Anfield success providing another major boost to their Premier League title defence.
