SEETHING VAN DIJK CLAIMS DIVING LED TO BOTH PENALTIES

VIRGIL VAN DIJK accused Harry Kane of diving after the Tottenham striker rescued a point in one of the most dramatic games of the season. Mauricio Pochettino’s side secured a 2-2 draw at Anfield with the last kick of the game as Kane joined the Premier League’s 100 club, firing in a penalty after Van Dijk had been judged by assistant referee Edward Smart to have kicked Erik Lamela. Kane had missed from 12 yards in the 87th minute after winning a contentious penalty of his own. Loris Karius saved that spot-kick, which was awarded by referee Jon Moss after the England international had tumbled over the outstretched arms of Liverpool’s goalkeeper. The furious home players surrounded Moss and his assistants at the final whistle. They were pulled away by Jurgen Klopp, who said he would ‘get one of the biggest fines in the history of football’ if he voiced his true feelings. But Van Dijk, Liverpool’s £75million record signing, explained the frustration in the home dressing room, saying: ‘First of all it was offside (for the first penalty). Secondly, he (Lamela) just put his body in front of me. I don’t think that’s a penalty and the same with the first one. That is also clearly not a penalty. ‘It is a dive. You see him (Kane) diving clearly and no one is talking about that. But I think it is a dive. ‘There is a lot of discussion about whether it is offside, yes or no, but I think it was offside as well. I thought it was a dive. You could just see him making that dive. ‘The referee made his decision together with the linesman. It was good for us that it was saved.’ On the incident with Lamela, Van Dijk added: ‘I see him coming in the end and I try and hold my leg in. He just pulled his body in front of the ball and he goes down. The referee said play on and I was very disappointed that the linesman said otherwise. ‘The most annoying feeling at the moment is we should have won and kept the 1-0 lead. It was a good goal from Victor (Wanyama) and unlucky that we didn’t win.’ Tottenham, who had Dele Alli booked for simulation in the second half, more than deserved their point. They were superb in the second half and Wanyama’s stunning strike cancelled out Salah’s third-minute opener. Salah appeared to have won it when he danced through Tottenham’s defence in stoppage time but Kane had the

final say, becoming the second-fastest player in Premier League history to reach a century of goals. Kane was adamant the right decision had been made. He said: ‘Coco (Lamela) got there first and he was wiped out. It was a brave call but the right one. Thankfully, I got a second chance to put (a penalty) away.’ Mauricio Pochettino was quick to praise the performance of Moss and his assistants, saying: ‘I made a decision a long time ago not to talk (about referees) but I think it is right to congratulate them when they show character. I saw the clips in the changing room. They made the right decisions.’ Pochettino hailed Kane’s achievement — and his nerves of steel — for converting a second penalty in front of The Kop. ‘To score 100 goals in the Premier League, you have to have big, big cojones,’ said Pochettino. ‘It was a fantastic performance. Everyone who watched saw a fantastic game. My team played so well.’