Jamie Carragher has strongly criticised Alexis Mac Allister for his behaviour during Liverpool's Premier League defeat by Arsenal, calling the incident "embarrassing" and "ridiculous" and urging the game to take action against such conduct.
The Argentine midfielder was at the centre of the biggest flashpoint in Sunday's match at Anfield, where Arsenal won for the first time since September 2012 thanks to Kai Havertz's first-half goal. Mac Allister had earlier missed Liverpool's best chance to equalise, heading over the crossbar from close range after being picked out by a cross from Milos Kerkez.
In the closing stages, Mac Allister fell to the ground theatrically while clutching his face following an altercation with Noni Madueke. The Liverpool player had initially sparked the incident by slapping Martin Odegaard on the back of the head and speaking to the Arsenal captain while he was down following a foul, which Jurrien Timber also took exception to.
No Punishment for Madueke
Madueke was already on a yellow card for earlier sweeping the legs of Bradley Barcola but avoided further punishment from referee Andy Madley following a review by VAR Stuart Attwell. The VAR deemed that it was not a headbutt, and Timber and Mac Allister were both booked instead.
Mac Allister's behaviour was branded "embarrassing" by Gary Neville on commentary, and Carragher also criticised him heavily after the match.
Carragher's Plea for Change
Speaking on Sky Sports, Carragher said: "I wanted Liverpool to win the game, but I'm delighted he [Madueke] never got sent off there. We have really got to be strong calling people out and just saying, 'this is embarrassing'.
"It's got to stop. It's ridiculous. I said it a couple of weeks ago with a similar sort of thing, I can't stand it. I think everybody in the country watching football, this head-to-head stuff... if someone puts their head back and butts, of course, red card.
"But this stuff about head to head and if someone touches the other one goes down and the player gets sent off, as a game, as football, people in the Premier League, supporters, call your own people out for it.
"I'm a Liverpool fan. That is a joke from Mac Allister. It's got to stop. People are trying to gain this advantage because they know they can. Because red cards are getting given for it.
"Whether it's from Howard Webb [chief refereeing officer for PGMOL], the Premier League, the managers get together, stop getting red cards for this crap."
