Arne Slot criticised the decision to not stop the game as Crystal Palace scored after an injury to Liverpool goalkeeper Freddie Woodman. The Reds' head coach felt that referee Andy Madley should have halted play when Woodman went down with a knee injury, allowing Daniel Munoz to score into an empty net.
Slot's Frustration
Slot said: "The number of times I've played against a team and then a player is on the floor and the referee blows the whistle. It happened against Man Utd when Mac Allister was on the floor, they played on and Macca needed five stitches afterwards. I don't blame them, by the way, the referee should stop the game." He added that it could become a tactic to feign injury to stop play, noting that Woodman did it multiple times.
Regarding Munoz, Slot said: "I think it's 50-50 because some players wouldn't have taken the shot. Some players would stop and some would score. I don't blame him as much as I blame the referee."
Robertson's View
Liverpool defender Andy Robertson also felt the referee should have stopped the game, but admitted goalkeepers are often over-protected. He said: "I don't think he looks up. Woody went down, tried to get back up and went down again. Munoz is looking down trying to concentrate on kicking the ball. My opinion is the ref should stop the game but goalkeepers are protected too much by the refs. Thankfully, we were the ones who scored the next and not them."
Robertson praised Woodman's performance: "I thought he was outstanding. The lads and coaching staff had so much faith in him because we see him every day. I'm just gutted he didn't get the clean sheet."
Woodman's Reaction
Woodman himself commented: "The grass was really dry and my knee got stuck in the ground. I didn't know what to do. It didn't punish us in the end and the three points are massive."
Match Impact
Munoz's effort reduced Liverpool's lead after Robertson had doubled their advantage, following Alexander Isak's first goal since December. The win was crucial for Liverpool as they leapfrogged Aston Villa, who lost 1-0 at Fulham, with Florian Wirtz rounding off the scoring in added time to boost the Reds' Champions League hopes. Slot's side now have an eight-point buffer over Brighton in the European places as they returned to the top four.
