Mikel Arteta breaks silence on Gabriel ‘handball’ as Arsenal boss claims ref DID follow rules on ‘scandalous’ decision
MIKEL ARTETA has praised the referee for using “common sense” by not issuing a handball penalty in the 2-2 draw with Bayern Munich.
Gabriel caused a stir after picking the ball up from a short David Raya goal-kick before restarting play during the Emirates clash on Tuesday night.
Based on the word of the law, Arsenal should have conceded a second penalty against Bayern Munich with the referee reportedly “admitting” to seeing a clear handball in the box.
Bayern boss Thomas Tuchel was left frustrated, claiming that whistler Glenn Nyberg told him he saw the bizarre incident.
But Arteta hailed the Nyberg for making the right decision.
He said: “I did notice the Gabriel handball story, especially after where there was a certain reaction from Bayern…”.
“The referees used the law and the law says to use common sense and whether you take an advantage from that situation which there isn’t any advantage”.
According to the International Football Association Board (IFAB): “Referees are expected to use common sense and to apply the ‘spirit of the game’ when applying the Laws of the Game.”
This use of common sense is commonly referred to as ‘Law 18’ in IFAB’s Laws of the Game, which does not actually include a Law 18.
After the game, Tuchel told TNT Sports: “The referee did not have the courage today to give us a deserved penalty, in a bit of a crazy and awkward situation.
BEST FREE BET SIGN UP OFFERS FOR UK BOOKMAKER
“He admitted on the pitch that he saw the situation and that in a quarter-final it’s not enough for him to give a penalty for a kids’ mistake.
“So he admitted that he knows about the mistake the player made. That is a bit frustrating.”
In his post-match press conference, Tuchel, 50, later added: “I felt a lot of little decisions go against us… and a huge mistake in not giving us a penalty.
“What makes us really angry is the explanation on the pitch. He said it’s a kid’s mistake and isn’t giving a penalty for that.”
Arsenal will have to pull it back and win at the Allianz Arena on Wednesday night to secure a spot in the semi-finals.
How Arteta made Arsenal horrible again, with Tony Pulis tactic and gentle star turned into Diego Costa-style hate figure
By Dave Kidd
BOTTLERS, chokers, shandy-drinking southern softies.
These were the charges levelled at Arsenal when they blew the title last season.
And even if the actual reason they failed was because William Saliba got injured and Rob Holding had to start, Mikel Arteta clearly took those accusations to heart.
If his team are not crowned champions next month, the Gunners boss has categorically ensured that they won’t go down being accused of nicey-niceyness.
Because, as well as being thrillingly entertaining and free-scoring when they want to be, this season’s Arsenal are also thoroughly horrible.
They are not here to make friends. They are not interested in being anybody’s second-favourite team.
And so, six days after stink-bombing the Etihad with a display of Mourinho-esque anti-football for a 0-0 draw, Arsenal turned up at the home of former bogey-team Brighton and s***housed their way to a thoroughly impressive 3-0 win.
How wonderful for the travelling Gooners to witness Ben White — against his former club — going down as if he’d taken a bullet to his neck when Brighton’s Pervis Estupinan brushed against him.
White is renowned as a gentle and decent bloke, intelligent enough to challenge the zeitgeist and claim there might be things in life other than football.
And yet suddenly he’s become some Diego Costa-style anti-hero hate figure, his wife goading the masses by posting social-media pictures of them playing a childish card game on a sun lounger after he’d refused an international call-up.
Because Arsenal are horrible again. Even Ben White is a villain.
And that might just be Arteta’s greatest triumph.
Click here to read Dave Kidd’s column in full.
To read more from Dave Kidd, click here.