“As a former professional referee, this is a stain on our work. I just can’t agree with this. It feels like there’s a conspiracy behind this. I don’t know if they are trying to favour Manchester City or even Arsenal.”– Mark Clattenburg holds a differing opinion from his fellow referee Mike Dean and criticizes VAR following Liverpool’s denied penalty.

Former Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg has acknowledged that Liverpool should have been given a penalty in their 1-1 draw against Manchester City on Saturday.

Liverpool expressed frustration after Alexis Mac Allister fell inside the box in the 98th minute. The Argentine seemed to be impacted in the chest by Jeremy Doku, who made contact with the ball but also collided with Mac Allister as the Reds midfielder fell while holding his upper body.

Referee Michael Oliver dismissed the appeals, and VAR official Stuart Atwell chose not to overturn the decision for what could have been deemed a clear and obvious error.

Jurgen Klopp believes Liverpool were unfairly denied a penalty, while Mike Dean provided insight into why the officiating team may have concluded it wasn’t a penalty.

Dean explained to Sky Sports: “I believe Doku touched the ball, but in the follow-through, he caught him directly in the chest. I think it could be a penalty.

It’s a significant decision by the VAR. There was a slight touch on the ball, but the follow-through made contact with him on the ribcage.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if Stuart sent him to the screen. Check’s complete. Obviously played the ball first and the follow through same as I’m guessing a normal coming together. He’s very, very fortunate in my opinion there Doku.”

Now, Clattenburg, who recently took on the role of referees’ consultant at Nottingham Forest, has shared his perspective.

The 48-year-old firmly believes that Liverpool were unlucky not to receive a penalty and has criticized VAR and the officials for failing to identify the error.

In his column for the Daily Mail, Clattenburg stated: “Liverpool should have been awarded a stoppage-time penalty against Manchester City, but this highlights the issue in the Premier League currently – referees are making errors during matches, and they are not receiving adequate support from their VAR counterparts.”

He further remarked, “If this occurred outside the penalty area, it would unquestionably have resulted in a free-kick, without exception. The location inside the box doesn’t suddenly make it a fair challenge, especially when Mac Allister might be left nursing bruises on his chest come Monday morning.

“Regardless of the match’s significance and the timing in the 98th minute, this incident warranted a penalty.”

Clattenburg also expressed frustration over the lack of intervention from VAR official Stuart Atwell. Despite referee Oliver’s decision not to award the penalty, Atwell didn’t advise him to review the incident on the pitch-side monitor.

He continued, “This is where the frustration lies – we’ve seen similar situations this weekend where the officials at Stockley Park should have alerted their colleagues on the field that they had overlooked a penalty or a potential red card, but failed to do so.”