"It is wrong, though, to say that, because I know the referee, he made decisions in my favour. He made a good decision against Arsenal with the penalty. There were no favours."
Wenger understandably, though, disagreed. "There was a blatant penalty," said the Arsenal manager.
"It was not given - and just under the eye of the referee.
"This sort of thing has happened to us frequently and with the referee that close, it should have been given. If he is in a bad position we can see why it wasn't given but he was so close to Kuyt and still didn't give the penalty. It is difficult to understand why it wasn't given."
Kuyt believes his team now have the edge but expects a tough second leg against an Arsenal side he described as "playing the best football in Europe".
He added: "I wouldn't say we are favourites. Champions League matches are very close and you never know what is going to happen in them."
Arsenal had taken a 23rd minute lead through an Emmanuel Adebayor header but Liverpool were back on level terms three minutes later when Kuyt slid home Steven Gerrard's cross from the left.
Arsenal's Robin Van Persie, who went off at half-time with a thigh injury, is a doubt for Saturday's Premier League match between the two sides.
.jpeg?trim=0,0,0,0&quality=75&auto=webp&width=320&crop=8:5,smart)
