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Virgil van Dijk takes aim at ‘nervous’ referee after Liverpool’s 2-2 draw with Fulham… as Premier League leaders fume over Andy Robertson’s red card in Anfield thriller

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Virgil van Dijk takes aim at ‘nervous’ referee after Liverpool’s 2-2 draw with Fulham… as Premier League leaders fume over Andy Robertson’s red card in Anfield thriller

  • Virgil van Dijk insisted referee was ‘nervous’ during Liverpool’s draw with Fulham
  • Tony Harrington sent off Andy Robertson in dramatic 2-2 draw at Anfield
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By ADRIEN BISHOP

Published: | Updated:

Virgil van Dijk took aim at referee Tony Harrington after Liverpool were held to a draw by Fulham on Saturday.

After Andreas Pereira put the visitors ahead at Anfield, the Reds were dealt another blow when left-back Andy Robertson was sent off just 17 minutes later.

The Scot mishandled an interception and then brought down Harry Wilson at the edge of the penalty box.

Harrington appeared to hesitate at first as a lengthy VAR check ensued, before showing Robertson a red card and reducing the hosts to ten men for the rest of the match.

Liverpool equalized through Cody Gakpo after the restart, but Marco Silva’s side regained the lead thanks to a goal from substitute Rodrigo Muniz.

The hosts continued in their quest for an equalizer in the closing stages and were rewarded for their efforts when Diogo Jota drilled his strike into the bottom corner to ensure Liverpool did not leave Anfield empty-handed.

Virgil van Dijk has claimed that referee Tony Harrington seemed nervous during Liverpool’s draw with Fulham.

Andy Robertson received a straight red card in the first half of a dramatic clash at Anfield

The championship leaders finally salvaged a point thanks to a late goal from Diogo Jota.

Speaking after the match, Van Dijk praised his team’s resilience, but insisted both teams were in agreement on the referee’s performance.

“A big return is very positive,” Van Dijk said on Sky Sports. “It’s disappointing to have 10 men but we showed fight and kept trying to create chances. It could have been more, but we take the point and move on.

‘Stay calm. It’s easier said than done. It was always going to be tough against them. We saw it last year and last week against Arsenal. We had to turn things around and keep fighting. We tried.

“I had conversations with the Fulham players and we felt like the referee was nervous. He couldn’t communicate properly with Robertson, in my opinion.

However, despite his comments, the Dutchman insisted the official was not responsible for his side failing to secure all three points for only the third time this season.

He added: “We can’t put the blame on the referee. We all talk about protecting the referee but I haven’t been able to speak to him. It shouldn’t be a big deal because he wasn’t the one who made us lose points.

‘That’s how it is. We take the points, recover quickly and be ready for the match on Wednesday.

This result puts Arne Slot’s team five points ahead of their closest rival, Chelsea, in the title race.