A first half that had everything except calm

If you were looking for a routine forty-five minutes of Premier League football, you picked the wrong match. Liverpool's home clash with Brentford descended into near-total chaos in the closing stages of the first half, with VAR intervening twice, a penalty overturned, a goal conceded, a red card issued and eight additional minutes played before the referee finally blew for the break.

The first flashpoint arrived when referee John Brooks pointed to the spot after a foul on Alexis Mac Allister. The decision initially looked nailed on in real time, but a VAR review told a different story. Former Premier League referee Mike Dean, speaking on Sky Sports, was clear: "It's not a penalty. They've missed the ball, Brentford player has played the ball, he hasn't seen the touch, for me not a penalty. It does look like a penalty in real time but when you see it again, he plays the ball and it's a coming together."

Brentford take the lead before losing a man

Just when Liverpool appeared to have dodged a bullet, Brentford turned the momentum into something far more damaging. Keane Lewis-Potter put Andoni Iraola's side in front just three minutes after the penalty reprieve, leaving the Reds needing a response they couldn't immediately deliver before the interval.

What followed, though, swung the balance back in Liverpool's favour. Brentford midfielder Yehor Yarmolyuk moved his head towards Jeremy Jacquet in an incident that briefly looked as though it might go unpunished. Referee Brooks was eventually called to the pitchside monitor and, after reviewing the footage, issued a red card for violent conduct. The Premier League Match Centre confirmed the decision on X, quoting the referee: "After review, the Brentford No.6 commits a headbutting action. The final decision is a red card." Dean noted it was consistent with precedent, referencing a similar incident involving Rodrigo Bentancur as a comparison.

The experts were divided on the delay

On Sky Sports, the panel could barely contain their disbelief at how long the process took. Paul Merson said: "I called it straight away, I can't believe it's taken that long. I called it in two seconds and we waited three or four minutes." Dean offered a possible explanation for the delay, suggesting VAR official Darren England may have initially held back: "It looked like he just stuck to the players and I'm guessing Darren England has said, 'delay, delay, delay'." Merson had already predicted the outcome moments before it was confirmed, stating: "Going to be a red card here. Pushing each other, looks like he lands one on him, he's staying down. For me it's a red card."

All of that before you even account for the injury to Dominik Szoboszlai, who limped out of the match to add to concerns around a hamstring problem that had already kept him out of Liverpool's previous two fixtures. And as if the first half drama wasn't enough, further disruption followed early in the second period when Jeremie Frimpong was forced off with an injury shortly after coming on as a substitute for Ronald Araujo. Liverpool head into the second half a goal down but with a numerical advantage, and the question now is whether they can make that extra man count.