Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta admitted he “couldn’t believe” that James McArthur avoided a red card for kicking Bukayo Saka on the back of the calf during Monday night’s 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace.
The midfielder was booked by Mike Dean but VAR failed to intervene, despite the challenge forcing Saka off the pitch, with the England international replaced by Albert Sambi Lokonga at half-time.
“If we want to detect things that are really relevant in a game and can change a football match, then they have to be looked at,” Arteta said.
“That situation is not only affecting them but we have to take the player off because of the action so it is affecting it two different ways. It is not right.
“You (need to) make a straight decision, when it is so clear and so obvious straight away and they have to play with 10 men.
“Bukayo could not continue, we had to take him off at half-time, I saw the action and I can’t believe how the player continued on the pitch. I don’t get it. With what we were explained at the start of the season and what happened tonight, it doesn’t make any sense.”
Former Premier League referee Mark Halsey told CaughtOffside that McArthur was “extremely lucky not to receive a red card” for what he described as a “wild kick.
“The Crystal Palace midfielder was late on the challenge, had no chance of winning the ball and booted Saka in his right calf at the end of the first half,” Halsey added.
“Mike Dean showed McArthur a yellow card but I felt it was an act of violent conduct and further punishment could have been dished out to the Scotsman. As a result, Saka was forced off at half-time and later had an ice pack on his leg.
“McArthur was also fortunate not to be cautioned earlier in the half for denying Emile Smith Rowe a promising attack at the Emirates.
“Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal and Saka could have felt aggrieved as Dean showed inconsistency by later producing a yellow card to the wide-man for the same offence on Jordan Ayew.”
Dean had already blown his whistle for a Palace handball, but still spotted the foul on Saka – though he didn’t deem it serious foul play.
In the Sky Sports studio, Jamie Carragher said Crystal Palace “couldn’t have any qualms if that was given as a red card.
“McArthur had a couple of challenges before [the Saka foul] which could have been a yellow, but this is just so strange looking at it,” Carragher said. “When someone doesn’t see the player, and they’re going to volley the ball, and then the [other] player comes from nowhere, you can say, ‘I understand what he’s done there’ – but this is one where he’s actually right in front of him.
“If Saka comes from behind, you’d say, ‘yes, it’s a sore challenge’, but there’s no way [McArthur] can’t see Saka as he’s trying to volley it. Now, the referee had just blown his whistle, I think it was for a handball in the box. I don’t know if [McArthur] thinks, ‘the whistle has gone, I can get away with this one’ – and he has got away with it. There’s no doubt.
“If you see it at full speed, because things always look worse in slow motion, you see the handball, the referee just blows his whistle, and [it appears he thinks he can have] a free whack, but it’s not great. We’re all pleased with the area VAR is in this season [compared with] the last couple of seasons, and it feels like it takes an awful lot for them to say it was a clear and obvious error.”
Saka’s fitness
Saka is now a doubt to face Aston Villa on Friday and Arteta was unable to confirm whether he expects him to be available.
“We’ll see how it evolves.” he said, confirming he was “very sore”.
“He could not continue and he’s a boy that is pretty tough and wants to keep playing, but he could not carry on.
“We have a quick turnaround after the next game so we will see how it evolves.”
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3lTTpbC
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