Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola said it is a "shame" there is no reward for honesty after his side was controversially denied a penalty in a 1-0 defeat to Arsenal on Sunday.

Liverpool was left aggrieved after Alexander Isak was pulled back by Jurrien Timber as he attempted to meet Bradley Barcola's cross midway through the first half.

The Swedish striker did not go to ground and, as a result, neither the referee nor VAR intervened to award a penalty.

Timber could even have been sent off for denying a clear goalscoring opportunity without attempting to play the ball.

"It's a shame you ask me this question. But, honestly, yes, we have to tell them to go down, because they are not going to call it otherwise," said Iraola after only his second defeat since taking charge of the Reds.

"I don't see the reason why. Only because he hasn't dived, or he hasn't gone to the floor. It shouldn't be a reason, but of course it's a penalty."

Arsenal was leading at the time of the contentious decision through Kai Havertz's early opener.

Liverpool roared back and should have been level by halftime, squandering a couple of gilt-edged opportunities. "We had good chances — we hit the crossbar and had good situations we were not able to finish. We definitely deserved a goal," added Iraola.

The victory could mark a giant step toward retaining the title for Mikel Arteta's men.

The Gunners move three points clear of Manchester City at the top of the table.

While City is expected to be hit with a huge points deduction unless it overturns a guilty verdict on more than 100 charges of breaking financial rules, Arsenal cannot afford to speculate.

"The mission was something that we didn't accomplish in 14 years and there were reasons for that," said Arteta. "Some of them were psychological problems, some were related to the quality on the pitch, certain moments or decisions, and we needed to nail absolutely all of them."

AFP