Why Liverpool Were Denied a Penalty Despite Yehor Yarmolyuk’s Red Card for Headbutting Jeremy Jacquet in the Box

The reason Liverpool were not awarded a penalty after Yehor Yarmolyuk was sent off for violent conduct inside Brentford’s penalty area has now been explained.
Tempers flared during Liverpool’s difficult away clash against an in-form Brentford side when Yarmolyuk received a red card for headbutting Liverpool defender Jeremy Jacquet inside the box.
Although the referee ruled that Yarmolyuk had committed violent conduct, Liverpool were not awarded a penalty. The explanation comes down to a specific rule in football’s laws.
Following a dramatic first half in which several Liverpool players were forced off with injuries, supporters became concerned when Jacquet was spotted on the ground in pain just before a corner was taken.
It was later revealed that Yarmolyuk had allegedly headbutted the Liverpool defender out of frustration while the players were preparing to defend the corner.
After reviewing the incident on VAR, referee John Brooks decided that the Ukrainian midfielder was guilty of violent conduct and showed him a straight red card.
However, Liverpool were not given a penalty because the ball was not in play when the incident occurred, as the Reds were preparing to take a corner.
IFAB Law 12, which governs fouls and misconduct in the Premier League, states: “Direct and indirect free kicks and penalty kicks can only be awarded for offences committed when the ball is in play.”
A similar incident occurred the previous week when Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur was sent off for moving his head towards Luke Shaw’s face during a 1-1 draw against Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Earlier in the first half, Brooks had awarded Liverpool a penalty following a challenge on Alexis Mac Allister. However, after consulting the VAR monitor, he overturned his original decision.
Liverpool subsequently went into the break trailing 1-0 after Lewis-Potter scored a stunning header in a frustrating first half for the visitors.
The Reds also suffered a setback when midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai was forced off after just 32 minutes with what appeared to be a recurrence of the injury that had kept him out of the previous week’s match against Manchester City.
Liverpool responded strongly after the break. Summer signing Victor Munoz produced an impressive piece of skill to get past Lewis-Potter before finishing to bring the Reds back into the game.
Alexander Isak, who also returned from injury during the match, then scored to put Liverpool ahead with 20 minutes remaining.
His goal proved decisive, securing the victory for Andoni Iraola’s side and lifting Liverpool to fifth in the Premier League table with 12 points.
Liverpool will now turn their attention to their next fixture, when they welcome Villarreal to Anfield for a Champions League encounter on Tuesday evening.