Mikel Arteta voiced his anger and disbelief over a controversial penalty decision that cost Arsenal two crucial points in their 1-1 draw against Brighton.
The match had started promisingly for the Gunners, with young Ethan Nwaneri scoring a well-executed goal.
However, a disputed penalty awarded against William Saliba allowed Joao Pedro to level the score from the spot, leaving Arteta stunned by the referee’s decision.
The penalty stemmed from a clash of heads between Saliba and Pedro in the box, with Saliba appearing to make contact with the ball. Despite this, the referee penalized the Arsenal defender, a call Arteta found perplexing. Reflecting on the decision after the game, Arteta said, “I’ve never seen anything like this before. Saliba touches the ball. I asked the players if they had ever seen something similar, and none of them had. When you look at it closely, you can clearly see the distance between the players, Joao Pedro touching the ball first, and then Saliba also making contact with it. There was some contact, yes, but it didn’t deserve a penalty.”
Arteta was also critical of how quickly the decision was reviewed by officials, suggesting it lacked sufficient scrutiny. “They said it was reviewed in three seconds, which felt incredibly fast for such a significant decision,” he noted.
While the penalty dominated discussions, Arteta also admitted that his team’s overall performance fell short of their usual standards. “I’m disappointed because we came here to win. We started well with some great play and a fantastic goal, but we couldn’t sustain that level,” he said.
He acknowledged the difficulty of the match, especially with key players absent. “We knew it would be a tough, competitive game given the players we’ve lost recently, but we still managed to compete,” he added.
However, Arteta was critical of his team’s second-half performance, pointing to too many unforced errors. “It wasn’t our best day. In the second half, we gave away too many easy passes, which stopped us from controlling the game. That was frustrating,” he explained.
In conclusion, Arteta expressed his frustration with the officiating, while also recognizing areas where his team needed to improve as they moved forward.
