In the early morning of the 10th, the English Premier League ushered in a key battle, the top of the Arsenal away from Liverpool to start the fight. Despite the fact that Arsenal once led by two goals, it drew 2-2 on the road, causing a heavy blow to the road to the championship. The referee's decision in the match has once again sparked controversy, with video showing a referee suspected of elbowing Liverpool left-back Andrew Robertson in the head during the half-time break. The Professional Referees' Company of Great Britain (PGMOL) has announced that it will investigate the rare incident and the allegedly violent referee may face a lengthy suspension.
Arsenal started strongly, with Gabriel Martinelli scoring on a breakaway in the middle of the pitch just eight minutes into the game, and he assisted again on 28 minutes when Gabriel Guisses made it 2-0 with a header.Then, as if in a dream, Liverpool stepped up their attack and equalized three minutes before halftime with Mohamed Salah.
In the second half, the two sides battled it out and Liverpool were awarded a penalty in the 54th minute, but Salah hit the post with his shot. It wasn't until the 87th minute that Alexander-Arnold broke through on the right and Roberto Firmino headed home to level the scores at 2-2. In stoppage time, Liverpool had a great chance, but Lance Kadar made consecutive saves to make it a 2-2 draw.
The draw was a loss for both sides, with Arsenal missing out on two valuable points and Liverpool widening the gap to fourth place to 12 points. However, the post-match discussion turned to referee Hestakis, who allegedly struck Andrew Robertson on the jaw with his right elbow on the stroke of half-time, with referee Paolo Triani subsequently showing Robertson a yellow card.
The violent act was captured by Sky Sports and caused widespread concern. Former England international Seton said, "I don't know what the referee was thinking but he has to be suspended, I've never seen anything like it." Former Premier League referee Heath also said that Hestakis deserved a heavy fine: "If it is proven that he deliberately drove his elbow, I think he deserves the same punishment as Alexander Mkhitaryan (who pushed the referee) (an eight-match suspension)."
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp wouldn't say much after the match, "I heard there was an incident but I didn't see it, if it did happen, the video will say it all." PGMOL released a statement after the match saying they had been informed of the clash and would be investigating.
