Ref Watch: Ex-Premier League defender 'baffled' by Man Utd fans penalty claim against Liverpool

Former Liverpool defender Stephen Warnock has slammed Manchester United fans for their arguments over Harvey Elliott’s late penalty decision.

Liverpool salvaged a late point against their rivals to ensure they kept pace with Arsenal as Mohamed Salah sent Andre Onana the wrong way to score his 23rd goal of the season. Elliott cut inside defender Aaron Wan-Bissaka but the former Crystal Palace’s defender rash tackle left the referee with an easy decision to make.

On second look, the slow-motion replays show little to no contact which has had United fans questioning the decision from Anthony Taylor. However, given the fact he didn’t get the ball and that he went to ground with such intent, Taylor was always likely to point to the spot and Warnock, speaking on Sky Sports News’ Ref Watch, believes the United fans objection’s are baffling.

“I find it baffling. I’ve seen this on social media and, don’t get me wrong, it is a lot of Manchester United fans who are saying there’s no contact. That’s beyond me how they think it’s not a penalty. One thing we always talk about is the reaction of the player; Wan-Bissaka doesn’t argue against it and no other United player does either. They all know it’s a stonewall penalty.”

Doubling-down on Warnock’s opinion, former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher dismissed the claims about contact saying Wan-Bissaka left Taylor with no choice. “I think if you make a challenge like this, the expectation is a penalty. People can say ‘is there a lot of contact?’ but he dives in and I think the referee was right.”

There were no other penalty incidents to contest in a game which saw seven yellow cards, as Conor Bradley and Curtis Jones were cautioned. Elliott’s impact off the bench was clear to see as he offered Liverpool a new dynamic on the right-wing and he had his side’s last strike of the game on goal as he reiterated his first-team claim.