Virgil Van Dijk Asks Referee if He Has Been Drinking During Liverpool vs Arsenal Game

• Virgil Van Dijk posed a weird question to centre referee Chris Kavanagh on December 23
• Kavanagh was in charge of the top-of-the-table Liverpool vs Arsenal contest at Anfield
• Van Dijk wasn't happy with one of his decisions as the game progressed

Virgil Van Dijk surprised fans when he seemingly asked referee Chris Kavanagh an 'awkward' question during Liverpool's game against Arsenal.

Van Dijk captained his side at Anfield as they sought to bounce back from the dispiriting draw to Manchester United last time out.

Arsenal offered more problems going forward and their efforts were rewarded in the 4th minute when Gabriel Magalhaes turned in a cross from Martin Odegaard.

Mohamed Salah, however, restored parity before the hour mark. Before the Egyptian's equaliser, Arsenal were lucky to see Martin Odegaard's handball inside the area not penalised.

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What Van Dijk said to the referee

In the second half, Van Dijk was adjudged to have committed a foul as the Gunners won a free-kick. The Dutch defender was far from impressed with the decision and appeared to ask Kavanagh if he had been drinking. The supposed question was complete with a gesture to drive the point home.

Here is a video of the incident

The former Southampton centre-back was surprisingly not booked for dissent, with Kavanagh letting it slide. The 38-year-old official had a busy day in Merseyside, showing a total of seven yellow cards in the contest.

Sin-bins to curb dissent?

Sports Brief has previously reported on football law-makers, the International Football Association Board (IFAB) considering introducing new changes to how players' abuse of referees is dealt with.

The IFAB is planning to introduce a 10-minute sin bin, popularly used in rugby, to protect referees from abuse. The plan was approved to proceed for trials in lower leagues during IFAB's AGM last month.

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Why Odegaard wasn't penalised for handball

Sports Brief has also reported that the Norwegian turned in the penalty area and as he attempted to play the ball, he slipped and visibly grabbed it.

The referees' body, the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), explained that Odegaard's arm was moving towards his body after he slipped, not the ball.

But what do the Laws of the Game say about handballs and the awarding of penalties?