Linesman faces ban for 'elbowing' Andy Robertson in Liverpool vs Arsenal clash

The football community is up in arms about a bizarre incident that took place during the Premier League clash between Liverpool and Arsenal on Sunday night. During half-time, an assistant referee appeared to elbow Liverpool player Andy Robertson in the throat after the latter approached him to have a word.

The incident took place after the half-time whistle was blown and just before all the players left the field. The Liverpool full-back was seen approaching linesman Constantine Hatzidakis and appeared to reach out to touch his arm to stop him from walking away before the official struck him near the face with his elbow.

It is unclear if Hatzidakis was deliberately trying to put an elbow on the player, or if his gesture was meant to simply "brush off" Robertson. The player was clearly on the way to confront the linesman about something, which may have been perceived as a threat by Hatzidakis.

Numerous replays of the incident have since been circulating on social media, but it remains unclear what really transpired. In the immediate aftermath of the strike, Robertson could be seen clutching his jaw and complaining while teammate Mohamed Salah was restraining him and preventing him from approaching the linesman once more.

Robertson was then given a yellow card after the incident, which confused a number of pundits who think that that caution was unfair. Many have been calling for a ban on Hatzidakis for allegedly elbowing the player.

In the aftermath of the incident, the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), which is the governing body for match officials working for the Football Association, has announced it will investigate the alleged attack.

In a statement, the group said: "PGMOL is aware of an incident involving assistant referee Constantine Hatzidakis and Liverpool defender Andrew Robertson at half-time during the Liverpool v Arsenal fixture at Anfield. We will review the matter in full once the game has concluded."

Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson is also believed to have complained about the incident directly to head referee Paul Tierney.

Both the linesman and the Scotland international will likely be interviewed by the PGMOL before any decision is made on the matter. The incident comes at the heels of another controversial incident wherein Fulham player Aleksandar Mitrovic received an 8-match ban after shoving referee Chris Kavanagh.

The altercation took place on March 19 during Fulham's FA Cup exit at the hands of Manchester United. There are calls for the ban on Mitrovic to be lengthened, but now questions are being asked about the severity of punishment suitable for an official who struck a player whether intentionally or not.

Former Three Lions player Darren Bent took to Twitter to say that he feels Hatzidakis should also receive an eight-game ban after the incident with Robertson.

Every corner of the internet has an opinion on the matter, but with the investigation underway, it remains to be seen how it will be resolved.

Back to the match, Arsenal suffered a blow to their title hopes after being held to a 2-2 draw by Liverpool. Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus scored two early goals for Arsenal before Mohamed Salah managed to pull one back just before the break. Then, Roberto Firmino found the equaliser with just three minutes remaining in regulation time.

The draw puts Arsenal only six points ahead of defending champions Manchester City, who still have a game in hand. The leaders are currently sitting on 73 points, and City could close the gap to just three points if they win their match against Leicester City over the next weekend. The Gunners will surely feel the pressure if that happens, with the title fight becoming tighter in the closing stages.

Meanwhile. Liverpool are languishing all the way down in eighth place in the league table.