The debate as to whether Liverpool should’ve had a penalty awarded to them in their 2-0 win at Ipswich on Friday night continues to rumble on.Shortly before half-time at Portman Road, Cody Gakpo was taken out by a sliding challenge from Abdul Fatawu off the ball, with the only question being whether the contact was inside or outside the box (replays would appear to indicate that it happened on the perimeter line).Referee Darren England took no action in realtime and VAR didn’t intervene, so play carried on with no sanction being handed out.Liverpool penalty incident yields debate in Sky Sports studioThe incident was discussed on Sky Sports News‘ Ref Watch feature on Monday morning, with Dermot Gallagher and Jay Bothroyd having differing views on whether or not the correct decision was made.The former top-flight official maintained that the tackle was made outside the penalty area, wheread the ex-Blackburn and Coventry strike believes the contact occurred within the box and that a spot kick should’ve been awarded.Gallagher agreed that Fatawu’s challenge should’ve constituted a foul but explained that the crux of the matter was the exact point where the incident occurred, saying: “That’s the problem, location. “The referee doesn’t give a foul, so because he doesn’t give a foul, the VAR can’t give a penalty because he thinks it’s outside the box. The game wasn’t stopped, so they look and they came to the conclusion, like me, [that it’s outside the penalty area].”Image via Sky Sports NewsWant more Empire of the Kop coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trustLiverpool could justifiably have had a penaltyAt the very least, Liverpool should’ve been awarded a free kick just outside the box – it seemed quite clear that Gakpo was fouled, and England ought to have seen it from his vantage point but appeared to be looking at the ball rather than where the tackle occured.Contrary to Gallagher’s comments, there still would’ve been grounds for VAR to intervene and recommend a review from the referee at the pitchside monitor to ascertain the precise point of contact. A foul on the penalty box line is, by the Laws of the Game, deemed a penalty.Ultimately the decision didn’t have a significant bearing on the result as the Reds maintained their 2-0 lead at that point until the final whistle, but it still doesn’t mean that the officials get a free pass or should be allowed to just gloss over it.Ipswich may argue (as Chris Sutton did) that Jeremy Jacquet could’ve been shown a second yellow card for tripping Emersson near the touchline, so there were a couple of notable talking points regarding the officiating on Friday night.Just three weeks into the new season, the standard of officiating in the Premier League is once again under the microscope. It isn’t an exact science, and the search for consensus is impossible, but we just hope that the top-flight campaign isn’t blighted by preventable refereeing controversies on a weekly basis.The post “That’s the problem” – Sky Sports duo disagree over contentious refereeing call in Liverpool win appeared first on The Empire of The Kop.