Yehor Yarmolyuk got slapped with a red card for violent conduct against Liverpool defender Jeremy Jacquet in first-half stoppage time, but somehow, some way, Liverpool walked away without a penalty kick. This all went down with Brentford already leading Liverpool 1-0 thanks to Lewis Keane-Potter’s earlier header, and it just piled on the drama.
VAR Chaos Sends Yarmolyuk Packing
The whole thing kicked off when Jacquet hit the deck in the box, clutching his face. Referee John Brooks initially missed it, but the VAR wasn’t having it. Brooks got sent to the pitch-side monitor to review the incident, and after watching the replays, the decision was clear: Yarmolyuk had moved his head towards Jacquet’s, an undeniable act of violent conduct. Brooks even announced it on the pitch as a “headbutt action” as he showed the Brentford midfielder the red card. It’s a brutal blow for Brentford, who were suddenly down to 10 men against Liverpool, all before the half was even over. Remember that similar incident just last week at Old Trafford, when Rodrigo Bentancur did something similar to Luke Shaw and got sent off? This isn’t exactly new territory.
No Penalty? No Problem… for Brentford
Here’s the kicker: even though Yarmolyuk got tossed for violent conduct *in the box*, Liverpool did not get a penalty. Why? Because the ball wasn’t in play. The players were just waiting for a corner to be delivered when the incident happened. So, while Brentford lost a man and faced a massive uphill battle, Liverpool just got another corner, which feels wild given the circumstances. This wasn’t even the only VAR drama of the match, either. Earlier, Brooks actually awarded Liverpool a penalty, but then went to the monitor himself and overturned that decision too. Talk about a rollercoaster first half. And if that wasn’t enough, Dominik Szoboszlai, who just came back from injury, only lasted 32 minutes before he was forced off with what looked like a recurrence of the same issue. What a mess.
So, Yarmolyuk is gone, Brentford is playing with 10 men, and Liverpool is still chasing the game after that Keane-Potter header. This red card changes everything for Brentford’s game plan for the rest of the match, and Liverpool’s gonna have to make this man advantage count if they want to turn things around.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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