Amazed Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta hit out at the inconsistency of referee Chris Kavanagh after a red card for Declan Rice aided Brighton’s comeback in an ill-tempered 1-1 draw.
Rice saw red when he got a second yellow for denying Joel Veltman a chance to take a quick free kick shortly after half-time.
It gave Brighton the impetus and one-man advantage to respond to an excellent Kai Havertz first half effort s Joao Pedro snuck in a rebound equaliser soon after.
Angry Arteta’s gripe was that Pedro should also have been sent off as he committed a similar offence of kicking the ball away in the first half.
The Arsenal manager did not hold back as he said: “I was amazed. Amazed, amazed, amazed because of how inconsistent decisions can be.
“In the first half, there are two incidents and nothing happens. Then, in a non-critical area, the ball hits Declan (on the back of his leg), he turns around, he doesn’t see the player coming and he touches the ball. By law, he can make that call, but then by law he needs to make the next call, which is red card so we play 10vs10. This is what amazed me. At this level it’s amazing.”
Arteta had a point although his mood was clearly influenced by seeing his team drop two points from a match they were expected to win.
Arsenal had the better chances even with ten men, but goalscorer and the otherwise excellent Bukayo Saka could not find a way past brilliant Brighton keeper Bart Verbruggen .
The significance of Rice’s red card is a suspension for their next match away to Tottenham in the north London derby, a match new signing Mikel Merino will miss through injury.
Reflecting on playing such a significant fixture without his two highest profile midfielders, Arteta added: “Well, this is what happens. We have to adapt to that context. That’s why we have other players that can fulfil that (role) and (I can) give that opportunity to somebody else.”
