Virgil van Dijk accused Everton's Abdoulaye Doucoure of provoking Liverpool fans after a fiery Merseyside derby descended into chaos following James Tarkowski's late equaliser.
The Reds were leading 2-1 and heading nine points clear at the top of the Premier League before Tarkowski struck in the eighth minute of stoppage time to provide a dramatic, memorable ending to the last derby at Goodison Park.
Doucoure was then seen celebrating in front of the Liverpool fans, prompting a shove from Curtis Jones and a mass confrontation between players from both sides.
Both Doucoure and Jones were sent off for second yellow cards by referee Michael Oliver, while Reds boss Arne Slot and his assistant Sipke Hulshoff also saw red.
"We saw how they celebrated the goal, they have all the right to," Reds captain Van Dijk told TNT Sports.
"I think Abdoulaye Doucoure wanted to provoke our fans, I think that is what I saw and Curtis Jones didn't think it was the right thing to do. And then you know what happens if there is a little tussle.
"I didn't think the referee had the game under control. Both teams had to deal with it. This was their cup final.
"I think the referee had a big part in the game, in terms of certain challenges were given as fouls and similar weren't."
