Former Liverpool forward Dean Saunders has spoken out on talkSPORT after Mohammed Salah won a penalty against Cardiff City.
The Egyptian forward was at the centre of refereeing controversy on Sunday, as a penalty was given in his favour, much to the annoyance of some as fellow talkSPORT pundit Dean Ashton pointed out Salah threw himself to the ground to win the spot-kick.
This prompted Saunders to claim that he could see a penalty coming before it was awarded as he noted that he told Ashton that Cardiff players shouldn’t get too tight to Salah.
“Does the contact mean Salah goes to ground? No. He throws himself down.”
“If he doesn’t go down, he doesn’t get the penalty. What’s he meant to do?” ?
@Dean36Ashton10 on the decision to give Mo Salah a penalty v #CardiffCity. pic.twitter.com/y2803dh6zy
— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) April 21, 2019
“As the ball got rolled into Salah’s feet, I said ‘don’t get too tight,'” said Saunders on talkSPORT, as seen in a clip on their Twitter account.
“He [Morrison] got that close to Salah, he’s that quick, that he’ll suck a penalty out of you.”
Opinion:
In this day and age, any defender can’t get too close to a player inside the box, especially not if there’s grounds there for a penalty to be given. In this case, Saunders explains perfectly why you can’t be clumsy in the Premier League. Salah is quick, there is no doubt about it, so as a defender, if you’ve got your arms wrapped around a player like that inside the box, it’s only going to end one way. Undoubtedly, Salah is in fact being fouled in the situation, so either way a penalty should’ve been given. It’s the manner of the decision which has infuriated people, because of the whole argument surrounding diving and cheating within the Premier League. Saunders’ view on Salah makes sense, and to get too close to a player of his speed and ability is never a smart idea, because he literally will ‘suck a penalty out of you’, whether that is seen as cheating or not. However Liverpool fans probably won’t complain as their side did get the important victory against Cardiff on Sunday.
