The Gunners claimed a landmark 1-0 victory over Liverpool on Sunday, their first Premier League win at Anfield in 14 years, with Kai Havertz scoring the decisive first-half goal. But the result was accompanied by a flashpoint involving Madueke and Mac Allister late in the match.
The pair confronted each other in the 79th minute, with their heads coming together before the Liverpool midfielder went to ground. Referee Andy Madley decided against showing a red card, and VAR did not intervene.
Madueke was relieved by the decision but suggested his opponent had deliberately tried to influence the officials.
Asked by Viaplay whether he would have swapped shirts with the Argentine, the Arsenal winger replied: "I wish I did."
He then explained his view of the incident: "I don’t think it’s anything whether it’s a yellow card or a red card. The referee didn’t think that. VAR didn’t think that. So we all agreed there.
"It’s a natural movement. He’s obviously clever, he tried to bait me into getting a red card there, but obviously not.
"In my head I was thinking, 'Oh, it’s possible with VAR; it’s about whoever interprets it. I don’t know what they’re thinking. But thankfully it wasn’t.'"
The incident did little to overshadow the significance of Arsenal's result. Havertz's goal secured three points that returned Mikel Arteta's side to the top of the Premier League table, and the manager was delighted with the way his players handled the challenge.
"We knew that we needed to nail absolutely all of them and we were going to have to navigate through periods that we were going to have to suffer," Arteta said.
"Because they are extremely good at doing that and creating those vertical attacks, those chaos moments for almost nothing. You really need to enjoy that. If you don’t, there will be a moment that you will switch off and they will punish you."
There was also a social-media talking point after the final whistle. Substitute Piero Hincapie posted photographs from the match on Instagram, finishing with a close-up of the gold Premier League champions' badge on his shirt and the caption: "I don’t forget."
Arsenal supporters interpreted the post as a response to Van Dijk, who had shared a similar image after January's goalless draw between the sides at the Emirates Stadium. The Liverpool captain's earlier post had been viewed by some as a reminder that his team were the reigning champions.
Hincapie did not explain the meaning of his caption, leaving supporters to draw their own conclusions. For Arsenal, however, the more important message had been delivered on the pitch.