2 days ago
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Liverpool head coach Arne Slot says he doesn't know yet the extent of the injury that Conor Bradley sustained against Arsenal, playing down the heated moment that saw Gabriel Martinelli throw the ball at the Northern Irishman.
After a close and tense 90 minutes, Bradley was stretchered off. While it is too soon to say how long the full-back will be out, the Liverpool boss said Martinelli's reaction was indicative of a wider problem in soccer.
"I don't know Gabriel Martinelli, but he comes across as a nice guy," Slot said in his post-match press conference. "The problem is there is so much time-wasting that you can sometimes be annoyed and think that the player is time-wasting.
"I cannot ask, in the 90th minute, when he plays Liverpool, that he thinks about it. I am 100 per cent sure that if he knew what the injury might be, he would never do that.
"But it doesn't look great if he has the injury we fear he might have. Football has come to the situation where players think that the player is diving in the 90th minute."
Bradley will need to have a scan to determine the extent of the injury that he sustained. For now, it is too early to work out exactly what the issue is for the Liverpool star.
"I don't know yet," Slot said. "It didn't look great if you have to go off on a stretcher. Maybe he can play on Monday. We don't know."
While Slot chose not to criticize Martinelli, Gary Neville was more forthcoming on Sky Sports. He suggested that the Liverpool players did well not to react in a more out-of-control way.
"I'm actually fuming with Martinelli," Neville said. "Honestly, I don't know how the Liverpool players didn't go over there and whack him, to be honest with you and take a red card. Absolutely disgraceful, that."
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta also spoke about the incident post-match in his press conference.
"Knowing Gabi, if anyone does, he is an incredibly lovely guy," Arteta said. "I hope that Conor is well, I will have a word with him."
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