Brentford's Yarmoliuk sent off for headbutt on Jacquet — but Liverpool denied penalty as ball 'not in play'

Red card but no spot-kick at the Gtech

Brentford were reduced to 10 men before half-time of their Premier League clash with Liverpool at the Gtech Community Stadium after midfielder Yehor Yarmoliuk was sent off for “violent conduct” against defender Jérémy Jacquet — but the visitors were denied a penalty because the ball was not in play.

Brentford versus Liverpool Premier League match action at the Gtech Community Stadium

The incident came in first-half stoppage time, with Brentford leading 1-0 through Lewis Keane-Potter’s earlier header. Jacquet went down inside the area holding his face, prompting referee John Brooks to be sent to the pitch-side monitor by the VAR.

After reviewing the replays, Brooks ruled that Yarmoliuk had committed a butting action when he bumped into Jacquet and moved his head towards the Frenchman. The referee announced on the pitch that the Ukrainian had been dismissed for a “headbutt action” — but that the decision would remain a Liverpool corner, with no spot-kick awarded because the players were waiting for the set-piece to be delivered.

A second VAR call and a familiar flashpoint

It was the second VAR intervention of the match. Earlier, Brooks had awarded Liverpool a penalty, only to overturn his own decision after viewing the monitor.

The red card mirrored a similar incident at Old Trafford last week, when Tottenham’s Rodrigo Bentancur moved his head towards Luke Shaw’s face and was also sent off.

Szoboszlai's return cut short

Elsewhere in the match, Dominik Szoboszlai’s return from injury lasted just 32 minutes as the influential midfielder was forced off in what appeared to be a recurrence of the issue.

Andrews' post-match verdict

Brentford ultimately lost the contest 2-1 to Liverpool. Afterwards, head coach Keith Andrews said Jacquet had been “cute and clever” in provoking the incident that led to Yarmoliuk’s dismissal, while also criticising the VAR call that overturned Liverpool’s penalty — a view shared by Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola, who agreed the decision was wrong.