Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez admitted it wasn’t a penalty, a view that was shared by Birmingham counterpart Alex McLeish.
“There’s no debate, it wasn’t a penalty,” said the Scot. “It’s a clear dive by Ngog, he has won his team a penalty. It has happened for centuries and we have to take it on the chin.
“The referee didn’t get it right and if he looks at it I am sure he’ll agree it wasn’t a penalty. I haven’t spoken to the ref but I’m sure he is an honest enough guy and will see that Ngog dived.
“Lee Carsley never touched him. Lee dived in and when you dive in you are always at risk, but there was no contact. It was not even close to being a penalty.
“You need luck in this game at times and that plays a part of it, and unfortunately that decision went against us. They say they even up over the season but it seems to work more for the big teams, but we’ll see.”
