"It’s a penalty, you can’t do that" - Michael Owen slams VAR for decision during Liverpool vs Aston Villa

Michael Owen has slammed VAR for the decision not to award Aston Villa a penalty during their 2-0 loss to Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday, November 9. Both sides were looking to add more points to their respective Premier League campaigns, but the Reds came out with all three points.

Darwin Nunez scored their first goal of the game in the 20th minute, when Liverpool pounced on the counter-attack to stun their visitors. Mohamed Salah cemented their win with the second goal in the 84th minute. However, before the hour mark, while the score was still 1-0, Aston Villa had a huge penalty shout.

Conor Bradley, who came on in the first half for the injured Trent Alexander-Arnold, seemed to foul Pau Torres while defending an indirect freekick into the box. The referee did not blow the whistle for a penalty, and VAR, who reviewed the situation quickly, determined a foul did not happen and accepted the referee's decision.

However, Michael Owen believes Aston Villa have been dealt a harsh blow. The former Liverpool striker slammed VAR, telling Premier League Productions (via Metro):

"It’s a penalty, you can’t do that. There’s just a blatant pull, Pau Torres is there at the front post, gets dragged out of that area with a shirt pull. If the ball goes to the back post and floats over everybody, then I think turn a blind to that, didn’t affect the play.

"That is a blatant pull. I’m astonished, once that went to VAR, astonished they didn’t give a penalty. I think that’s a stonewall penalty, personally. I don’t think there’s any debate in that, he literally pulls him out. It doesn’t matter if he’s pulling him for one minute or one second, he drags him out of it."

The penalty was not given, and Aston Villa were unable to find another way to get past Liverpool's tight defensive system.

---

"I know that in Europe this is a penalty" - Unai Emery reviews Aston Villa's loss to Liverpool

Aston Villa manager Unai Emery has reviewed the club's 2-0 loss at the hands of Liverpool, with the Bradley-Torres incident taking center stage in his interview.

The manager refused to lash out at the referee. However, he raised questions about the use of VAR and admitted that things would have gone their way if it was a UEFA Champions League match. He said (via Metro):

"With VAR, for me it was clearly a penalty because he pulled the shirt of Pau Torres. I know that in Europe this is a penalty, but here in England they want to use VAR… I don’t know exactly where. In this situation it was clear.

"I always respect the decisions of referees and I accept it, but for me, when I watched it, with VAR it was a clear penalty."

Aston Villa and Liverpool will both get some temporary respite, with the international break coming up. They will both return to the Premier League in a few weeks. The Reds will face Southampton at St. Mary's Stadium on November 24, while Villa face Crystal Palace at Villa Park on November 23.