In the first half of Liverpool’s recent Premier League match against Manchester City, a controversial incident took place, leading to charges from the Football Association (FA) against the Liverpool team. Despite initially taking the lead thanks to a goal from Mohamed Salah, Liverpool ended up suffering a 4-1 loss to Manchester City. This defeat allowed Arsenal, their championship rivals, to briefly narrow the point gap to just five points until Arsenal secured a victory over Leeds, reopening their lead to eight points on the same matchday.
The turning point in the Liverpool vs. Manchester City game occurred when Julian Alvarez scored the equalizer for City. Subsequently, Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gundogan, and Jack Grealish found the net in the second half, handing Liverpool their most significant league loss of the year. However, amidst the five goals scored, the spotlight turned to City midfielder Rodri, who narrowly escaped a second yellow card for halting a Liverpool counterattack.
Liverpool players vehemently implored referee Simon Hooper to send off Rodri, who had already been booked shortly before committing the foul. Instead of dismissing the Spaniard, Hooper issued a warning to the Liverpool players. As a result of their persistent complaints, the FA charged Liverpool with obstructing a match official, as stated in their official statement.
Liverpool FC has now been charged for the conduct of their players during the 34th minute of the Premier League encounter on April 1st against Manchester City. The allegation is that Liverpool FC failed to ensure its players conducted themselves in an orderly and proper manner. The club has until April 12th to respond to these charges.
Meanwhile, Arsenal, who are set to face Liverpool at Anfield, have already faced multiple FA charges this season for interference with match officials in various matches, including those against Oxford, Manchester City, Newcastle, and Leeds. In addition, an altercation involving Gabriel Magalhaes and Jordan Henderson during a rematch against Liverpool added to the mayhem. Despite this, the FA confirmed that no disciplinary action would be taken in the following week.
On the upcoming Sunday, Mikel Arteta will lead Arsenal in an attempt to break their losing streak against Liverpool at Anfield. The last time Arsenal defeated Liverpool in the league at Anfield was in 2012, making this season a significant opportunity to rewrite that record.
