Connor Bradley departed the Emirates flight with a fixed knee and on crutches, but Arne Slott feared the worst as he could be seriously injured. The Liverpool defender suffered what appeared to be a serious knee problem late in the draw with Arsenal. Bradley was also at the center of controversy over Arsenal substitute Gabriel Martinelli. He threw the ball towards Liverpool’s right-back, who was lying injured on the grass.
Sky Sports pundit Roy Keane branded the incident a “disgrace” given Bradley was clearly in pain, adding that it could cause yet another major injury headache for Liverpool manager Arn Slott. The defender required help from Liverpool staff to leave the ground, was on crutches and appeared to be in considerable discomfort, wearing a brace to protect his knee. In his immediate post-match reaction, Slott admitted he was “hoping for the best but fearing the worst” regarding the latest updates on Bradley’s condition.
Regarding Martinelli, Slott said, “If we had a player on the floor, people would already know there was something wrong with him. You would hate to see a player move when he might have an injury that bad. I hated to see one of our players move when he had an injury this bad, but we don’t know yet.”
Mikel Arteta was vocal in his support for the player, insisting: “He probably doesn’t know. Knowing Gabi, there’s no intention. I don’t know what happened to Conor, but I hope it’s not bad, but clearly Gabi has no intention of doing anything bad to him.”
However, former Manchester United star Keane and Gary Neville had very different views on the incident, with the latter labeling the Brazilian an “idiot” during commentary.
He said: “I’m surprised one of the Liverpool players didn’t go away and punch him. I think an apology is due. I’m angry at Martinelli, but I don’t know why a Liverpool player didn’t go and punch him and get a red card. It’s absolutely disgraceful.”
After the final whistle, Keane said: “I didn’t like it at all. It’s happened to me once before. It’s not good. First I threw the ball to him and then I stood over him. He’s on his knees a little bit and he’s trying to force him off. I think that was absolutely disgraceful.”
“I’m surprised the Liverpool players didn’t go after him a little more. He’s a good player who rolls around himself. It wasn’t a good scene, but I hope he sees it and apologizes.”
