What Liverpool crowd did at full-time said everything and Premier League explanation doesn't cut it

The booing that echoed around Anfield at full time was not reserved for the efforts of the Liverpool players, who played around 90 minutes all in a man down. Nor were they aimed at Arne Slot, whose game-changing substitutes saved a point.

Instead, they were directed squarely at the match officials and their colleagues on VAR, who Reds fans were clearly incensed by. The only question was which of the handful of decisions they felt most aggrieved by.

For the sending-off of Andy Robertson after 17 minutes - for the denial of a goalscoring opportunity for Harry Wilson - there could be few complaints. The Scotland captain's poor touch put him in a world of trouble that was made worse by a panicked foul and a subsequent dismissal.

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The source of the ire was maybe not giving Fulham goalscorer Andreas Pereira a red card of his own after raking his studs down the Achilles of Ryan Gravenberch, who excelled as a makeshift centre-back in the absence of Robertson.

A case could also be made for the Kop's boos to stem from the lack of additional time on top of the nine added on for what was top-tier gamesmanship from the full visiting contingent, particularly Alex Iwobi and Antonee Robinson, who most certainly took longer than necessary to pick themselves up after a couple of incidents involving Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez.

Or maybe the frustration of the home faithful could be traced back to the call to not to send off Issa Diop inside the early seconds, when his thigh-high challenge on Robertson was given only yellow.

"If I looked back at the whole 100 minutes I saw, I wasn't surprised that he didn't give a red card," was Slot's coy take on that, post-match. "It's up to you how you want to read this comment!" It didn't take a clairvoyant to believe he shared the supporters' irritations.

Whatever the disgruntled noise was really aimed at, it wasn't the commitment of the 10 men and the subs, who ran themselves to a standstill throughout to cover for the loss of left-back Robertson, who now sits out Wednesday's trip to Southampton in the Carabao Cup. Such was the time-wasting theatrics of the visitors - which is of course their prerogative - that it was difficult to ascertain just who exactly had the fewer men without counting them.

Having twice fallen behind to goals from Pereira and substitute Rodrigo Muniz, however, the 10 men were forced to settle for a point that does little for their title aspirations and opens the door slightly for the chasing pack. For Chelsea, who entertain Brentford on Sunday evening, the Londoners now have the chance to reduce the gap to just two points and they were the real winners here. Last week's Merseyside derby postponement does at least give Slot's team a game-in-hand on that score.

Framing this result in that way, though, does a disservice to how well Liverpool actually played here against a full complement of Fulham players. The mental reserves, the stamina and the quality was there in droves when needed, even if a dramatic late winner could not be sourced. "I couldn’t have asked for more," Slot said.

An eventful a 17-minute period as Robertson has likely ever had began with him being taken down by an awful Diop challenge that was high in its inexecution. The Cottagers' defender likely survived due to it being early in the game. An explanation was hurriedly published by the Premier League but it was a poor decision for an even worse challenge, however much they try to justify it.

Robertson was then unable to deny Pereira from converting at the back post from the impressive Robinson's cross before a slack touch allowed Wilson in and he was forced to bring his former colleague down. A lengthy VAR check confirmed the former Reds winger was onside, meaning the Liverpool left-back could not bemoan his fate.

It's been a difficult few weeks for Robertson, who has now been sent off having conceded penalties against Real Madrid and Southampton. With Kostas Tsimikas back in training the Greek's return is a timely one, even if the person who will be most critical of Robertson will no doubt only be himself.

A few minutes before that unfolded, Harrington opted only to caution goalscorer Pereira for a nasty rake on Gravenberch. It was a decision former Premier League referee Mike Dean labelled "100% a red card".

Liverpool levelled shortly after the restart when Salah registered his 100th career assist after Cody Gakpo headed home an inviting delivery to the back post. The Egyptian's determination to ensure his team didn't lose this was tangible at times, even if he was given as tough an afternoon as he has experienced all season against Robinson, whose marauding down the left side caused problems all game, particularly when Slot went to a back three that was forced to cede space on the flanks.

Liverpool huffed and puffed but were unable to secure the lead before Fulham, as they did all game, attacked the space vacated by the lack of a right-back and ended with Robinson's low cross for Muniz, whose flick nestled into the far corner. It was a hammer blow that was harsh on the home side, who had fought so hard to make light of the numerical disadvantage for so long.

Fortunately for Slot, he was able to welcome back Diogo Jota after two months out and the Portugal international showcased exactly what the Reds have been unable to call upon for too long when he turned on a pass from fellow sub Darwin Nunez to skin Jorge Cuenca before coolly slotting past Bernd Leno. It was a sublime piece of play that only highlighted further how important the No.20 is - if he stays fit. The next few months are a critical period for him personally and a start at Southampton will do him a world of good. Get him firing and who knows what this team can pull off this season.

The nine minutes of additional time came and went largely without any gilt-edged chances for the Reds, save for one goalmouth scramble and a blocked effort for Van Dijk from Robinson. Down the other end, Alisson made a huge save to deny substitute Adama Traore and neither side could nick it.

Liverpool will feel more frustrated of the two but, as evidenced by the noise at full time, it will pale in comparison with how the supporters felt over how this game was officiated.