James Tarkowski appeared to say sorry to Alexis Mac Allister for his shocking tackle on the Liverpool star.
Tarkowski only received a yellow card for the terrible challenge on Mac Allister when he took the ball and then caught his opponent high up on his ankle in the follow through.
Grim replays showed the Argentina international was lucky to escape serious injury in the 11th-minute tackle.
Remarkably, referee Sam Barrott was not sent over to the monitor by VAR to review his decision.
The pair were then spotted speaking after the match where it appeared the Everton defender was apologising for the tackle.
talkSPORT host Adrian Durham, who was at Anfield, said: “Right at the end I saw James Tarkowski and Alexis McAllister share a moment, it looked to me like Tarkowski was apologising.
“I’m not sure McAllister was ready to accept the apology, because he could have had his leg broken tonight.”
The Premier League Match Centre released a statement shortly after confirming why the challenge had not been upgraded to a red.
It read: “The referee’s call of yellow card for a reckless foul by Tarkowski was checked by the VAR, with contact on the follow through after Tarkowski had played the ball deemed to be reckless.”
The tackle has been widely condemned, with even former Everton hardman Duncan Ferguson calling it a ‘red card all day long’.
The challenge was the big talking point of the match, with Liverpool going on to win 1-0 to move them a step closer to the title.
The Sports Bar boys Jamie O’Hara and Jason Cundy took Tarkowski, and VAR, to task over the tackle.
O’Hara said: “What’s the point in VAR?”
Cundy added: “That is the sort of challenge when I used to play you could get away with. As long as you get the ball, the man is irrelevant. You got through the ball and you want to get the man as well.
“That’s an old school challenge. That’s a throwback challenge.
“There’s no place for it in the modern game. It’s a terrible tackle.
“The ball is there to be won, but there is no place for that tackle in the modern game.
“MacAllister is a lucky boy, and so is Tarkowski.
“That to me is the perfect example of when people say ‘what is the point of VAR?’ It is a terrible tackle, it’s a red card every day of the week and he’s got away with it.”
Liverpool restored their 12 point advantage over second place Arsenal with eight Premier League games to go.
