“He has grabbed him by the arm and held him back, that is a nailed on pen and they have got away with it”- Joe Cole blasts referee Simon Hooper following controversial call as he says Crystal Palace should have had a penalty after Virgil van Dijk pull on Marc Guehi despite official statement from Premier League

Liverpool have been told Virgil van Dijk should have conceded a penalty in their Premier League win against Crystal Palace. An early goal from Diogo Jota was enough to secure another three points and confirm Arne Slot’s side will sit top of the table over the October international break.

Though the Seagulls have not won a game this season, Liverpool fought hard to secure their clean sheet with Alisson required to make a number of saves. Third-choice goalkeeper Vitezslav Jaros was also needed at Selhurst Park with Alisson going off late into the clash because of another hamstring injury.

Palace dominated the final 20 minutes in search of an equaliser and looked to have a route back into the game when Marc Guehi went down in the box. Replays showed the central defender had his arm grabbed and pulled back by Liverpool’s Van Dijk.

Referee Simon Hooper dismissed claims at the time with VAR David Coote checking the decision but quickly agreeing that the right call was made. The official word from the Premier League was “that the challenge was not sustained holding and had no impact on the play.”

However, on TNT Sport, Joe Cole offered his verdict on the penalty with it clear the former Chelsea man believes the wrong decision was made.

“I don’t understand. He has grabbed Guehi’s hand,” he began. “You can shout he’s not going to get the ball but Van Dijk doesn’t know that. As [Trevoh] Chalobah hits it into the ground that could quite easily have dropped to him.

“He has grabbed him by the arm and held him back. I like players’ reactions and Marc Guehi, he is not one to claim for something (if it isn’t) he thought it was a penalty. So that tells you, I think that is a nailed on pen and they have got away with one there.”

Palace continued pushing but the Reds stood firm with Slot seeing his side win a sixth consecutive game in all competitions and move up to 18 points at the summit of the Premier League standings.